Star Fox: Oblivion
by The Lone Deranger
Summary: Two years after Ordo was defeated, the StarFox team begins a journey that takes them out of the Lylat System and into unfamiliar territory. New allies are made, friendships are severed, and inner demons must be faced in order to bring peace once more.
1. Prologue:A Mistake

_**Star Fox: Oblivion**_

_**By Justin Lewis**_

_**Authors Notes**_

_**Hey guys, I just wanted to make this short and sweet so we could get right into the story (too late :P)**_

_**This is my first attempt at a novel length fan fiction, expect it to be complete within 1 to 2 months since I am one of those fast writers.**_

_**Rating: M**_

_**Grisly Violence**_

_**Explicit Language**_

_**Sexual Content**_

_**Prologue: A Mistake**_

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I'm just as lost as you  
And probably more confused  
So fucking far from perfect  
My mind wrecked from abuse

There's something fucking wrong  
When war takes sons and daughters  
Our lambs misled to slaughter

War!  
Clenching the fists of dissent  
Lies!  
Clenching the fists of dissent  
Fear!  
Clenching the fists of dissent  
Change!  
Clenching to hope

Machine Head - "Clenching The Fists Of Dissent"

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A brown furred dog sat idly, waiting for Friedrich Sturm, leader of the infamous terrorist group; The Great Line, to leave his hideout in the outskirts of Prall. The buildings were run down and probably hadn't been renovated for many years, making it a good place to make a quick getaway. Ulrich Wurz, the head chairman of the Untied Council of Besdolore had been captured by The Great Line and was in week three of being held hostage. The remaining members of the council were able to find his whereabouts, which in turn, ended up being exactly where their leader was stationed.

Thinking they could kill two birds with one stone, they hired two mercenaries; a Deutsche Schaefferhund by the name of Otto von Hiedrich, and Michael Drescher, a Greyhound. Their mission was to eliminate Sturm and rescue Wurz.

Otto had fortified himself in a half-burnt bedroom, looking over the compound that Wurz and Sturm were located inside. The medium sized building seemed abandoned to the normal passerby, but inside was a much different story. Ulrich was deep within the walls experiencing unimaginable atrocities. It was a miracle he was still alive (confirmed by videos sent from the group themselves).

Otto looked over toward the compound again, seeing that there were only a few men guarding the outside, probably grunts. They could be easily disposed of without much of a hassle. The hound eyed a passing vehicle in the street below, putting his paw into his coat. As it passed by without stopping, he let his grip on whatever was inside his coat go. Otto took this moment of calmness to put on his headset, and cue his mic.

"This is Otto speaking, do you copy?" There was a momentary silence over the radio, followed by a faint crinkle of feedback.

" Michael Drescher, I hear you loud and clear." A Germanic sounding voice replied back

"Good, are you in position?"

"Affirmative, we won't let Sturm get away this time." The sound of a clip being loaded could be heard on the other end.

"What does he look like?"

"Very much like Ulrich and I." There was another pause. "Odds are he's going to be dressed like Wurz, as to make any attempts on his life more difficult. They look very similar, but the one difference is the grey patch of fur on Sturm's forehead."

"10-4."

Otto opened his trench coat and grabbed a large gray sniper rifle, and a mount. After attaching the mount, he placed it on the ground and checked through the scope to make sure it was positioned correctly. After some readjusting, everything was in place. Now, came the wait…

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It was roughly ten minutes before their targets were spotted. Sturm was wearing a navy blue vest, black slacks, and matching combat boots. The gray patch on the greyhound's forehead was clearly visible. Behind him was Ulrich Wurz, wearing the same attire. Otto found it quite peculiar that Wurz looked rather calm and collected. Perhaps he was forced to in order to blend in better with the others. A handful of guards followed the two outside and began to converse. Something wasn't making sense here, and Otto was going to find out soon enough.

"Okay, I see them. Make sure you get a good mark on him." Drescher crackled.

Otto set the scope clear on his forehead, and waited for the right moment, any sudden movement could put the bullet into the head of someone else, or miss completely.

"Come on…" He mumbled to himself as his tail stood straight at attention. He seemed to be trembling far too much to keep a smooth shot. "Fuck!" He stifled. "Drescher, I need you to take the shot for me."

"What's wrong?"

"I can't keep the damn thing straight." His irritation came out loud and clear.

"There isn't a clear shot from my end, you're gonna have to make due with what you have." He pounded the floor in frustration. His paw wouldn't stop twitching, it was as though he didn't want him to go through with this. "Fine…" He got back up toward the window and overlooked the scene again. He could see that there was an open shot on Sturm, he seized the opportunity and took a deep breath. The sight was perfectly set on him now, his sweaty paw pulled the trigger, letting out a deafening bang as the sniper cocked back.

The bullet sped through the air at a blistering pace before making contact with the greyhound's skull. A fist sized opening appeared in the entrance and exit wound, he had no time to react. He was dead before he could even hear the gunshot. Blood sprayed onto the pavement like a pressurized hose. More splattered around the body as it hit the ground. Wurz immediately ducked behind a guard as they began to fire at the location of the shot.

The bullets began to ricochet all around him, one ended up digging itself into the dog's cheek below his right eye, making him yelp in agony. Luckily for him, it entered through the side and not directly so he would recover. It still hurt like hell though.

"I did it Michael, he's dead." He said, slightly gurgled from the blood flowing down his throat. There was a moment of silence, as he heard the guards approaching the building.

"Well done Otto…" Drescher said in a menacing tone. "You've just assassinated Ulrich Wurz..."


	2. Is There A Problem?

_**Chapter One**_

_**Is There A Problem?**_

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I wanna have the same last dream again  
The one where I wake up and I'm alive  
Just as the four walls close me within  
My eyes are open up with pure sunlight  
I'm the first to know  
My dearest friends  
Even if your hope has burned with time  
Anything that is dead shall be re-grown  
And your vicious pain, your warning sign  
You will be fine

Angels and Airwaves - "The Adventure"

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A loud buzz was the first thing that rang in his ears.

"Ah dammit…" He mumbled as he threw his paw over his back, trying to reach for the alarm. Instead, he was merely successful at knocking it down. "Fuck!" He turned over and sat up on the bed. Wolf O'Donnell's eye twitched as he rubbed it before placing his eye patch over his empty socket. The lupine took the ringing clock and pressed the top before putting it back into its former place. He shot another glance at it, trying to look at the time.

"Whoa, eleven?! Talk about sleeping in…" He tried to force himself into a more attentive state of consciousness, repeatedly shaking his head. Since his return to the skies, he was usually known to be the early riser of the group. That would not be the case today. "Hmm, Fox is gonna kill me." He thought aloud. He didn't mean for it to sound bitter, more so humorous. His new leader had been fairly lenient with stuff like that since it happened far and few between. There was no need to try and be discreet and make it look like he was awake the whole time.

"Okay, lets get to work…" He took off his patch , which made him feel a bit stupid for putting it on in the first place, and headed into his personal bathroom, on the opposite side of his bed. From there, he showered, brushed his teeth, styled his hair to look like his usual faux-hawk, and got into his black jumpsuit with a Star Fox insignia on his left side.

"Alright…" He mouthed. The lupine tried to think if he had forgotten something, but dismissed it having felt as though he was ready.

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The lounge was surprisingly busy for this time. Usually, the team would be at the bridge, making preparations for an attack. However since there was no planned assignments for the day, everyone was congregating in there. Compared to its predecessor, the _Great Fox III _seemed to be a lot more roomier and welcoming. Sure, there was that metallic look for the walls and floors, but in the end, a larger ship seems to make things more open and less claustrophobic, and with the arrival of Wolf and Panther a year ago, it was obvious that there would need to be a larger ship.

Fox was in the most surprising of positions; slumbering on the couch. A bowl of extremely soggy cereal stood at his feet, not even touched by him. Over the past week, he seemed to be suffering from some sort of sleeping problem which is not uncommon in this business. When it was time to head out for a mission, you wouldn't know that he was having these issues, but when inside the _Great Fox III, _this was what he usually did.

On the other side of the room was the green frog, Slippy. He was completely immersed in the news on the television in front of him, as was his usual hobby. The guy loved current events as of late, they seemed to be the only thing that he could find some sort of interest in while relaxing. What he looked forward to the most was when they would report of the latest inventions that boggled even his own mind. He would try and rack his brain to think of something better, like a competition of sorts.

In the center of the lounge was Falco, Peppy, and Panther, sitting at a small makeshift table that looked like a giant spool. They were passing out cards and setting them down in a pile, not even having a single glance at them. Whatever game they were playing was a rather competitive one because it every few seconds there would be a loud smack and some obscenities that followed.

While everyone wasn't working, they still had their suits on so they would be ready at any given moment. A common occurrence for the team as of late, with no major assignments being brought to their attention. For the Star Fox team, it was a fairly laid back job. It was these kinds of days that they both loved and hated.

Wolf had stumbled in after catching the sound of the television, when he found nobody on the bridge, he assumed they would be somewhere below decks. It was exactly where he expected them. His presence wasn't immediately noticed, with everyone in the middle of their own thing. However, with a less than subtle cough, he was able to get Slippy's attention. He motioned to the lupine to come his way, which he obeyed and sat on the couch.

"Well somebody must've gotten some good shut-eye eh?" He smirked.

"Well at least I can keep it secret." Wolf nodded as he discreetly pointed over to Fox, still slumbering, they chuckled in unison. "So anything new happening?"

The frog looked back at the TV before he went back to Wolf. "Not really. Besides, if anything was happening, the general would have called us." The metaphorical light in Wolf's head flicked on.

"That's what I forgot to do!" He exclaimed. "I'll be back in a little while." He ran out of the lounge and down the hall, jarring Fox awake. The vulpine looked pissed, because moments before, he was in his own little dream world doing God knows what (or in his case, who).

" God dammit, what just happened?" He growled at everyone.

"I think Wolf went to go call Serena." Slippy replied. When the words came out, Falco threw his cards down on the table in a mild fit of rage.

"Man, I'm sick of him calling her all the damn time!" The avian screamed, it all seemed like blind anger to the others. They looked at him just dumbfounded.

"Umm, Falco…is there a problem?" Peppy said as he rubbed his temple.

In reality, Falco didn't seem to like Wolf suddenly. When they became friends two years ago, everything was fine. However, now he just seemed pissed at him for no particular reason. Was he jealous of the new friendship with Fox? He immediately dismissed the idea, he wasn't going soft any time soon. After some quick pondering, he came to the conclusion that he just simply didn't trust him. Who was he really calling? Was he even calling anyone? These questions and more flooded his head. He felt that there was something else up his sleeve and he was going to find out ASAP. The same went with Panther, but he was more occupied with Wolf.

"No." He sighed. "I just had a moment. I need to go." He stood up, nodded at everyone, and calmly walked to his quarters.

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Wolf was now in his room, setting up a camera facing his bed. Serena didn't answer the phone so he decided to send her a video message instead. He set a five second delay to get himself in position and pressed record. After sprinting to the bed, he began to talk, thus assuming the delay had passed.

" Hey Serena, it's me again. I'm doing fine up here, space is space…kind of quiet, yet at the same time very beautiful. You can't see it from here," He pointed to something out of frame. "But out the window right now, we're passing a large supernova remnant. It's scary, but still spellbinding in it's own way. The vibrant colors that radiate off of them for some reason remind me of you." He let put an awkward laugh. "I wish you could come up here one day, I know that you don't support what I do but it doesn't have to be during assignments. Think about it okay?" He waved at the camera for a moment. "I love you Serena, I'll talk to you soon."

CLICK!


	3. Oblivion

_**Chapter Two**_

_**Oblivion**_

_**Authors Note:**_

_**SHORT CHAPTER INCOMING!**_

**_--------------------------------------------------_**

Thumbing through the pages of my fantasies  
I'm above you, smiling at you, drown, drown, drown  
I wanna kill and rape you the way you raped me  
And I'll pull the trigger  
And you're down, down, down

Korn - "Thoughtless"

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"_Otto von Hiedrich, what you have done was a disgrace to the country, a disgrace to our planet, and a disgrace to yourself. Ballistic evidence shows that you and only you fired upon Ulrich Wurz and Michael Drescher. For these atrocities that you have brought onto this planet, I hereby banish you from Besdolore indefinitely. Enjoy oblivion Otto…"_

The words played in Otto's mind like a CD on repeat. Every little line, every breath he made was remembered. One day, he was living a fairly rewarding lifestyle with a nice paycheck. The next, he was forcefully exiled from his home, and given an old ship that could barely run on its own power, the canine was left to wander the galaxy alone…

His ship which he appropriately named _The Junkyard_, could hold a two man crew if you were lucky. Even Otto had problems with the cramped quarters he stood in at that very moment. His room consisted of a single set of bunks. The actual bunks themselves were a bit on the short side and left very little stretching room for the rather tall hound.

Otto paced back and forth down the artificial hall made of a storage compartment on one end, and his bunk on the other. He was in deep thought, racking his brain over something. He paused in mid-stride and got in the top bunk. His knees were bent so his legs wouldn't hang off the edge.

While Otto laid there, he began to mumble something. It started off quiet, but it eventually became more audible. The way he said it was also becoming more intense. Beginning as a whisper, and finally becoming almost a growl.

"Michael…"

The backstabbing double agent. He couldn't stop saying his name. It brought pure rage to his head at the thought, but absolute pleasure when he thought about the possible ways he could get back. His mind became a book of grotesque fantasies, with him thumbing through and smiling at each and every page . He had never felt this way before, sure he was a mercenary for hire and he was paid to kill, but for the first time, he wanted to kill someone for free.

"Michael…Michael…" His voice became faster and louder, panting heavily. He was sweating now, his coat of fur began to look extremely greasy with all the perspiration. Otto's sharp teeth were now visible, looking like small knives that were ready to penetrate anything that got in his way.

And then, he snapped. Otto shot up from his bunk, smashing his head on the ceiling but it didn't seem to phase him. "I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU MICHAEL!" The canine screamed. But he came back to his senses, looking around the room as if there were millions watching over him. Nobody was, but in the past two days, millions knew him. The hound laid back down and shut his grey eyes, the lack of any communication with others had really gotten to him.

Before he drifted out of consciousness, Otto mumbled something…

"I'll find you…mark my words…"

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Falco was sitting in his quarters, still irritated at the events that had preceded. He looked forward to their stop in Zoness. Since their victory there almost ten years ago, the horrid pollution that plagued the waters and atmosphere was almost completely cleared out. The once thriving planet was slowly returning to its former glory. Their trip there would be a good time to unwind and possibly make amends with Wolf.

" Can't he just focus on work? He's way too obsessed with that Serena chick…" He thought aloud. Deep down, he knew that the only reason he thought this way was because he hadn't experienced life with a wife. Being very far away from someone you cared about can do a number on you. He knew Fox was like that whenever Krystal wasn't around, but since they worked together, it didn't happen very often.

"I gotta make things right." Even in his head, the fact that he said that was shocking. The self centered world he had lived in for the past few years had taken a surprising turn.

"Hey Falco!" Slippy yelled from outside. "We're about to land! Get your stuff together!"

"Yeah, whatever! I'll be right there." The avian stood up and opened his closet door, indiscriminately grabbing clothing without much thought. After packing both his supplies and his emotions, he walked toward the bridge.


	4. The Life

_**Chapter Three: The Life**_

**_----------------------------------------------------_**

I'm gonna be a rock 'n' roll star  
Gotta groove from night to day  
Gotta blow my honey jar  
Gotta blow my blues away

Metallica - "It's Electric"

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Zoness had gone through some very extreme changes over the past decade. Before the Lylat Wars, it was once a thriving planet that had some of the most breathtaking waters in the Lylat System. While it was not exactly a large planet land-wise, the land it had was used to it's fullest. The popular vacation spot had eleven main islands for the Cornerian army and tourists, with the most popular being the resort island of Katu.

However, with the arrival of Andross and his greedy companion-Samumarine, the world became a wasteland of toxic pollution that bubbled on the surface of the great seas of Zoness. The ape's men had seized control and began to pour hazardous chemicals into both the ocean, and into the islands soil, deteriorating it to the point of condemning the buildings that surrounded the area.

While the Star Fox team had a hard time penetrating the defenses of their stronghold on Zoness, they were eventually able to confront Samumarine and vanquish him before heading off to Sector Z. Thus bringing peace back to the planet, but it was only the beginning of a long recovery.

Fast forward twelve years, the planet was now almost completely restored to it's former glory, with the Cornerian militia's private island of Irgod becoming a defensive powerhouse, and Katu looking almost exactly the same (save the modernized look and the new airport). Zoness was once again the place to go for a good time.

On the airstrip in Katu, the _Great Fox III _was making it's final landing procedures, slowly hovering onto the ground before coming to a rest. When the vibrations of the engine had died off, the hatchet door slowly opened, giving off a mist from the airtight seals. When the door came down, the silhouettes of the team appeared in the mist. Fox stepped out, with a bag in hand, he packed light since this was going to be a one day rest. Further down the strip was an ape in a mechanics suit running toward them. As he approached the ship, he slowed down and caught his breath, before putting on a serious look and shaking the vulpine's hand.

"Noah Sapien, at your service sir." He said as they began to walk toward the terminal.

"Ah, I suppose you will be the one doing the inspection?" He grinned back.

"Yes sir, I will make sure that the_ Great Fox III _is in tip-top shape and refueled for your return to Corneria." Fox put his paw around Noah's back, and patted it.

"Great! And by the way, call me Fox from now on." He let go of him as the ape chuckled nervously.

"Will do Fox," He waved at the rest of the group that was still lagging a bit behind. "Welcome to Katu!"

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A short jeep ride through the jungle later, the Star Fox team had arrived at the Katu Breeze Hotel. A wide variety of tropical plants surrounded the entrance, giving off a very welcome aura. The first jeep pulled up to the roundabout that encompassed the entrance, carrying Fox, Wolf, and Peppy. They were fairly quiet on the way, mainly because Fox had tried to get more shuteye. The latter however still engaged in a little small talk about their last mission on Fichina, joking about how often the climate control device on the planet malfunctions.

Upon arriving inside the lobby, they were greeted by the hotel staff who took their bags and led them to a small café for them to wait for the rest of the team. They were given complimentary finger foods to chow down on as they waited.

"So did you get in good with the staff here or what Fox?" Wolf asked.

Fox took another bite of some shellfish, and spoke. "Well, we're the Star Fox team. I don't need to get in good with them to get nice shit like this." He picked something between his teeth. Moments later, Falco, Slippy, and Panther had arrived at the table, and began to chat with the group.

Wolf avoided the conversation for a moment and looked around the room. He saw that everyone was looking at them. It was obvious their presence was known. He focused on one person in particular, a small wolf. The little pup was apparently sitting with his mother who had a curious look on her face. The lupine tugged on her shirt and whispered something into her ear. Wolf couldn't help but feel like the kid was talking about him. He saw the mother grab something in a bag and passed it to him before he got up and approached their table.

"Umm…" The pup mumbled. "Are you…Wolf O'Donnell?" The poor kid was extremely nervous, with the skin under his fur turning a bright red.

"Yeah, that's me." He stretched out and crossed his legs. "What can I do for ya little man?"

"Well," He put his paws in his pockets, and took out a pen and paper. "Can I get an autograph?"

Wolf froze, he never had been asked to give an autograph. It seemed weird to him since he was known as the leader of the once menacing Star Wolf for so long. But now that he was working with Fox for a year, he became a household name for all to look up to.

"Sure, do you want the rest of the team to sign?" He took the pen and paper.

"Yeah!" The pup replied with glee.

"Yo guys, can y'all sign this for him?" They looked over and saw the kid smiling back. They nodded in approval, with some of them shaking his hand, making him feel welcome.

Before he actually signed the paper, he wrote at the top: _From the Star Fox Team_ followed by his name. He swiftly passed it over to the rest of the team, each taking their time to make it look nice. Fox took the longest, as he drew the Star Fox insignia on the paper.

After everyone was done, Wolf passed it back to the kid, who looked like a child on Christmas morning. With a quick glance at the signatures, he gave the lupine a big hug. His eye widened for a second, but went back to normal. Panther and Falco snickered at him, but he didn't mind. After the embrace, he ran back to his mother who smiled back at Wolf. It was nice to know that he could make someone happy, especially a child.

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When all was said and done, the team decided to head up to their rooms. Wolf and Panther were in theirs, unpacking all their things. Wolf decided that it would be a good time to have his daily cigarette and walked out onto the balcony. After grabbing one and lighting it, he took a long drag and allowed the smoke to exit his muzzle. He eyed the area below him, consisting of a large pool and dance floor. It looked very enticing at the moment with the slightly humid weather occurring. Across from his balcony was another building for other people to stay in. Some of the lights were becoming visible as the sun began to set in the sky.

The lupine could hear a sliding sound from behind him, Panther had come outside to get some fresh air, or at least as fresh as the air of a smoker could get. He leaned on the railing and put his paw out, as if to ask for something. Wolf took his cigarette out of his mouth and pointed at it, making Panther nod. He took another out of the box and handed his lighter to him.

"You know, when that kid asked for our autographs, I felt really important. Back in Star Wolf, we never would have gotten that kind of attention." Wolf sighed.

"The only attention we would have gotten was from the law." They laughed at the statement, which the lupine found to be one hundred percent true.

"Yeah, well it made me think of my new fame and how to deal with it…" There was a moment of silence.

"And?"

"And I was wondering how I should handle it?" They both took a simultaneous drag from their respective cigarettes and threw them over the balcony.

"Embrace it…" Panther's voice trailed off as he glued his eyes on two felines in the other building. They were on their own balcony, also eying him. They waved over in a seductive manner as to say "Come on over".

"Panther?" He stared at him for a moment until he came back to his senses.

"Speaking of which, I think it would be a good time to take advantage of this, if you know what I mean." He whispered, winking at Wolf.

"Well lucky you, go have fun while I remain faithful to Serena." He said in a half joking manner. Before Wolf knew it, Panther was out the door and heading toward their building. Now that he was alone, he took some time to sit back and admire the landscape. The cool breeze hit his fur like a feather, tickling his face. This however was cut short when he heard someone knocking on the door. He looked through the peephole and saw Fox standing on the other end. When he opened the door, the vulpine had his arms crossed and a sly smile.

"Ready for some fun?"


	5. Reality Check

_**Chapter Four: Reality Check**_

**_-------------------------------------------_**

Well its midnight, damn right  
We're wound up too tight  
I gotta fist full of whiskey, the bottle just bit me  
That shit makes me bat shit crazy  
We got not fear no doubt all in balls out

Nickelback - "Burn It To The Ground"

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The moment Fox and Wolf were downstairs, the place seemed to go into party mode. The lights began to flash all around them as other tourists were having a good time. For the first time in quite a while, Wolf had felt at ease. While he had taken work very seriously since his inception, he felt like he needed an outlet every now and then. Today, he found it.

"Wow, what a place…" He said to himself, mesmerized at the wide array of colored lights flashing all around him.

"You wanna get some pink!?" Fox screamed over the loud music that was playing. The lupine stepped back for a moment, looking at his teammate in disgust.

"What the hell Fox?!"

"What? I said do you want to get a drink?!" The muscles in his face relaxed as he realized his misinterpretation.

"Oh, sure I guess…"

As they worked their way through the crowd, he could see that many of the party-goers were well past the drinking limit, with most of them stumbling around and slurring their speech. He found the sight funny, but kept his laughter to himself. Besides, he probably was going to end up this way before the night was through.

The bar was located right by the pool, both could see bottles of liquor already strewn around the water. Behind the wet bar was a swine who looked to be in his mid thirties. Instead of the usual bartender attire, this guy was wearing a tropical shirt and some shorts, very beach casual. He eyed Fox for a moment before waving them over.

"What can I get ya guys." He asked nonchalantly. The lupine was about to answer, but was interrupted instead.

"Give us the strongest shit you got." Falco came up from behind them and slapped down a hundred credit bill onto the table with a huge grin. Fox didn't realize who it was at first, but he caught on.

"Very well sir." He walked over to a cabinet filled with what felt like an unlimited amount of drinks, and pulled out an unlabeled bottle, grabbed three shot glasses and poured it out. Afterward, he placed the bottle to the side for easy access.

"Take it easy on these." The bartender snorted. All three of them picked up their glasses and examined the clear liquid inside.

"What is it?" Wolf asked.

"Does it matter?" Falco responded back, downing it in one quick motion.

Fox quickly caught on and began to drink down the shots. He was taking them like they were water. Even after five, he didn't look phased, bringing shock to the lupine sitting next to him. Maybe it wasn't as strong as the pig said.

_Well, there's only one way to find out…_

The glass made contact with his muzzle as the liquid sloshed in his mouth, it was practically tasteless save for a minty aftertaste . It could have been vodka, but the mint seemed to throw him off. He swallowed hard and blinked violently. He decided that it wasn't as strong as he thought and poured two more shots.

"You two have fun," Falco exclaimed as he placed his feathery hands on their shoulders. "I'm gonna go scope out the area. Oh, and make sure that Foxie doesn't get too wasted…" With that, he walked into the crowd, becoming a phantom.

Wolf looked over to Fox, who had drunk his seventh shot. He looked fine on the outside. No stumbling, his pupils looked normal, but something really didn't look right. He couldn't put a finger on what it was.

"Uh, Fox…" There was no response, he just sat there with a blank look on his face. "Fo-"

"WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" The vulpine shouted as he stood up on the stool.

"Oh no…"

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The rest of the night was a blur as the liquor began to swiftly take effect. He could remember only a handful of things after the initial effects. The first being Fox, who had drunk four shots more than he had. The vulpine was in an absolutely horrid condition and wouldn't last long before passing out. The last time he recalled seeing him, he was still conscious, if you could call it that. He was yelling at the top of his lungs about how he was Fox McCloud and that he had become batshit crazy so apparently he was aware of that much. Wolf never did see Panther, Peppy, or Slippy. He assumed that the former was busy with the felines who eyed them earlier. He was also fairly certain that the other two were being party poopers and staying safe. One of the other memories that stood out was when found Falco with a red falcon. She had on a black tube top and some short shorts. Or was it green? He recalls the avian introducing her to him, but he couldn't remember her name. He also thought they may have exchanged numbers or something.

But in the end, it all came to a grinding halt when Wolf awoke in his bed, being reminded that he was prone to blackouts when he drank. The room was still spinning but not to the extent that he remembered the night before. Light flooded his room, indicating it was late in the morning. A loud ring pierced through his skull, he couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from until he saw his phone. He grabbed it as fast as he could, he just wanted to stop the noise.

"Hello?"

"Wolf, it's Falco." The voice on the other end said, coming out highly distorted and loud.

"Jeez man, please whisper!" He yelled while grabbing his head with his open paw. "I got a fuckin bad hangover…"

"I can tell, did you happen to see Panther at all last night?" He looked over to his side of the bed and saw the remaining mattress was untouched.

"He was probably fucking his brains out with some girls he found before I headed down to the party." Another thought came up. "Is Fox alright?"

"Yeah, but he's gonna be in a lot worse condition than you are." The sound of the crumpling of papers could be heard in the background. He was unsure what he was crumpling but it was definitely something paper related.

Suddenly, he could feel something behind him. It was as though something was scratching his back. But then he could hear faint breathing in his ear, and it was then he realized what was going on.

"Good morning" A voice whispered behind him.

The lupine was now wide awake, he screamed as he jumped out of bed to look behind him, throwing the cell phone completely across the room. He hoped that it was just a horrible prank, but it wasn't. On the opposite side of the bed laid another wolf, she was completely nude, and now with the sudden change of events had covered herself up. Wolf noticed he too was naked, and covered himself with his paws.

"NO! NO! NO!" He kept on screaming in complete panic, now he was really hoping this was all a joke or a vision. He slapped himself, trying to wake himself up. But it became too all to clear that this was reality.

"What's wrong!?" She yelled back, trying to calm him down. All it did was make the situation worse. Wolf could feel his heart tearing apart. He had done exactly what he feared, and it would be impossible to keep it a secret. He couldn't do that to Serena, it would be too much for him. His knees buckled under his weight as his head slammed onto the floor, where he silently wept. The tears seemed never ending.

"Wolf?" The other lupine whimpered. She went from freaked out, to worried.

He was able to regain his composure and let out a long sigh. "Look, I don't know who you are, but I suggest you leave…I'm…" He began to well up again. "I'm married…" Her face became flushed, and a cold sweat began to break out on Wolf's head.

"I-"

"Please…I just need time alone…" She got dressed and looked around the room for some things she apparently brought with her upstairs. Had she known about this, she never would have thought of having sex with Wolf. But the damage had been done, and she wasn't sure if she was to blame. Wolf put it all on himself though, and before she left he apologized for the inconvenience. When the door closed, and the room was silent, the lupine remembered that the phone was still on. He forced himself to walk over toward the corner of the room where the cell phone now rested and picked it up.

"Wolf? Are you there?"

"I'll talk to you later…" He closed the phone and sat down, thinking about how he would explain this to the one person he loved the most.


	6. My Former Self

_**Chapter Five: My Former Self**_

**_-------------------------------------------_**

Why give up? Why give in?  
It's not enough, it never is  
So I will go on until the end  
We've become, desolate  
It's not enough, it never is  
But I will go on until the end

I've lost my way  
I've lost my way  
But I will go on until the end

Living is, hard enough, without you fucking up!

Breaking Benjamin - "Until The End"

-----------------------------------------------------------

The_ Great Fox III_ had taken off from Zoness, and was making its way to Corneria for a meeting with General Pepper on a new mission. While most of the team was looking forward to it, there was one member who dreaded the return home. For the past day and a half, Wolf had refused to come out of his cabin. He had been emotionally scarred from the events that unfolded, and wasn't sure if he could even gather up enough courage to tell Serena what happened. His heart knew that he had to, but at the same time, the lupine feared that she wouldn't forgive him for such a thing.

Most of the time, he wouldn't even get up from his bunk, save the times he had to eat or go to the bathroom. He would just lay there, paws behind his head, legs crossed, and staring up at the ceiling. A desolate look was all that showed on his face, he almost appeared to be possessed by something. When he actually did come out of his room, he wouldn't even converse with any of the team. Even Panther found it quite odd for him to be this reserved.

And so he laid there, just him and his brain.

"It's over…" He mumbled. "I'm over…"

There was a knock on the door. It was stifled, but definite. He turned to see if whoever it was would come in before he reached it.

"Who is it?" He asked.

"It's me." Fox's voice replied through the metal hatch.

Wolf let out a sigh and motioned his way as if Fox could actually see him. "Come on in." A loud clanking sound reverberated through the room, followed by the door creaking open. The vulpine slowly walked inside, looking at his fellow pilot. He could sense his pain without even looking at him, it was probably the lack of any real movement in the room. Usually when Wolf was in his quarters, he would keep himself busy by sending a message to Serena, listening to music, or writing something down in his pilots log. But now, everything was frozen. There was nothing upbeat about Wolf anymore.

Fox stopped a few feet in front of him and looked him straight in the eye. "Falco told me what happened…" Wolf couldn't help but feel some sort of familiarity with what he said. "You want to talk about it?"

"I guess…" He got up and sat on the side of the bed now, allowing Fox to do the same.

"So what exactly happened?"

"Well, after you did six or seven shots of that drink, you went nuts."

"So I heard." He laughed nervously.

"Yeah, and I had taken three shots. That shit kicked in really fast, it was like a light had switched on. One minute I was fine, and then before I knew it, I was wasted." Wolf rubbed his head for a second, still trying to comprehend the effects of that beverage. "I don't remember much from the night after that. Only that Falco was hanging with some other bird chick." Fox's ears perked up.

"Oh, you mean Erika? Yeah, Falco told me about her. She's a merc too, and she was actually spying on someone at the party or something. He even got her number, lucky bastard." This put a smile on Wolf's face for once.

"Nice…" But the moment passed. "But the next morning I woke up hung-over like crazy, and there was this chick sleeping with me. I didn't even get her name."

"Oh shit man."

"It's just like my days in Star Wolf. Fucking women without any commitments or anything." The vulpine could sense his anger rising.

"But you were totally trashed, it's not the-"

"YES IT IS! I've become what I hated again!" He slammed his fists down on the bed, and began to growl. He never looked at Fox during this time, he just stared straight ahead. The fur on the back of his neck began to stand up.

"Wolf, calm down! This might not look good, but trust me, we can make things right." He braced himself for possible retaliation, when he got this way, anything could happen.

"How?!"

"Well, first things first. You need to relax." He placed a paw on the lupines shoulder, making him finally look at Fox. "Everyone makes mistakes, and sure this is one big band-aid we got here. But don't let it get to you, it will only make things worse. Krystal was a total wreck before she told me she was cheating on me. It dug at her for so long, and because of that, she ended up being an even bigger mess afterward. That's why you need to tell Serena sooner than later. If you tell her as soon as we get back to Corneria, you'll feel a lot better and she might forgive you sooner than later. Trust me, I should know."

Fox had brought up a great point. Trust is a major factor in a relationship, and if he ended up telling her sooner, it would be a lot less strain on him to tell if he let it build up over time. And if he did tell her months from now, she might think that he did it more than once and he just wasn't willing to tell about those. He stopped growling and put his ears down.

"You're right, I can't let this dwell on me forever." He got up and took a look at himself in the mirror near the door. "I'm a new Wolf O'Donnell, and this Wolf won't let a single fuck up bring him down." His remaining eye twitched at the thought. A sudden burst of energy took over the lupine, a warm euphoric sensation took over him.

"Awesome! So, does this new Wolf feel like he can socialize now?" The vulpine joked.

"Yeah sure." They walked out to the hallway and toward the lounge, where everyone was congregating. Wolf was still feeling guilty on the inside, but he felt like things would work out for him and Serena. It wasn't long before the moment of truth would come…


	7. He Said, He Said

_**Chapter Six: He-Said-He-Said**_

-----------------------------------------------------

You know I see right through you  
When you act like you don't know me  
You lie, you cheat. You steal, you lose  
Wouldn't wanna be in your shoes  
Always lookin over your shoulder  
For the ones you stick  
You sick little prick  
It looks like your times runnin out  
Creepin up your back  
So whatcha all about?

Limp Bizkit - "Trust?"

--------------------------------------------------------

Within the next hour, the Star Fox team would be arriving at their hangar located on the outskirts of Corneria City. While Fox and Peppy stood at the bridge, everyone else was still congregating in the lounge. The two of them hoped the others would be coming up soon, but they didn't count on it. While Fox and Peppy enjoyed a little R&R, they knew they had gotten that in Zoness and kept themselves concentrated on their approach.

"Man, Corneria. This place never does get old…" Peppy sighed. The hare had recently turned 51, but seemed to still have some sort of fight in him. It was nice to see an old timer like him see every version of Star Fox that had been introduced so far. However it pained him to know that he had watched one of them die, helped kill another, and the other to die by his own leader. While the latter wasn't exactly the vulpine's fault, Fox always felt he could have stopped it. But it was all in the past, and he wouldn't let it get in his way.

"Yeah. Never has, never will." He reclined in his chair as he looked out toward the big blue planet, now becoming larger with each minute that past. "It just has that certain something to it, I cant really put a finger on what though."

"Maybe it's our memories on it…"

Fox usually hated when he was reminded of the horrible things that had happened on the soils of Corneria, but when Peppy spoke of them, he felt happy. He didn't think of Krystal dying, or Ordo tormenting him. He thought of hitting the arwings with Wolf and Falco, getting back with Krystal, and the times he spent with his father. They were far more powerful than the sad times, and every time Peppy spoke of the days of the original Star Fox team, he couldn't help but be reminded of his old days that contained a more care-free atmosphere.

"No Peppy, it is our memories."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Falco, Wolf, Slippy, and Panther were playing blackjack to pass the time. While nobody seemed to have an edge, the black furred feline seemed to be having the most luck. He would go on these bad luck streaks but after them, he would end up getting twenty-one five times in a row. Everyone swore he was cheating, he just passed the accusations off and kept playing. Besides, they were only playing for fun, no money involved.

"So Panther, what ended up happening with those chicks you met?" Wolf asked as he dealt the cards out.

"Well, if you really want to know." He put on a slick smile. "They were into the freaky shit." Everyone let out a simultaneous "Oooooh!" followed by some snickers.

"Figures, you always seem to get those types." Slippy smirked.

"What can I say, I'm a guy who likes something…" He thought for a moment. "Different."

Wolf felt at ease now, he missed the small talk with his pals. They always seemed to find a way to make him laugh, even now.

"Too bad it all had to be spoiled with Fox and Wolf." Falco nonchalantly stated, causing the lupine to flinch.

_He just has to bring this up?_

"Umm, Falco. I didn't spoil anything." He retorted, trying not to show any frustration. "I'm not sure about Fox, but I don't see what you're getting at."

"Oh please, you've been a total buzz kill since we left Zoness." He stood up and pointed at Wolf, as if he was putting him on trial. " Just because you fucked some broad doesn't mean that you have to make us feel bad about you. Besides, you brought it on yourself." The other two could sense that this was about to get ugly and immediately ran out toward the bridge.

"I brought it on MYSELF?! Who the fuck gave me that strong ass drink!?" The lupine was now standing tall, his eye dilated. "You brought this on me!"

"Really?! Well did I make you screw that chick?!"

"You gave me something that greatly impaired my ability to comprehend anything, so technically yes!" They looked each other square in the eye, not moving a centimeter. It was almost like two gunslingers, waiting for the other to draw. Wolf bore his teeth and clenched his fist tightly, waiting for another word to slip out of the avian's beak.

"What the fuck you gonna do Wolf?!" He screamed, causing the lupine to grate his teeth loudly, followed by a sigh.

"You can't keep your mouth shut, can you…"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wolf ran at Falco with a burning rage that consumed his entire being, the bird had no time to react and was tackled to the ground, smashing the back of his head on the metallic wall. He was then being pummeled with punches, Wolf was relentless in his assault. He fought through the fatigue after a minute of smacking down his fellow pilot and didn't let up. It reached a point that Falco tried to shield himself from the punches, however with the time between the blows, it was impossible to stop him. He hoped that he would stop, knowing now that he messed with the wrong person.

The barrage of attacks began to slow up as the pain in his arms made it unfeasible for him to keep up a pace, somehow Falco was still conscious and took this chance to shove him off of him. Although he was blinded by the crimson blood now covering his entire face, he was able to land a few hits on Wolf, snapping the strap that held his eye patch on his face. Both of them were now extremely disoriented, and attempting to get on their feet. Falco was able to get up first, but he ended up stumbling right into the table they were sitting at minutes before. Cards flew across the room as it was knocked over on its side.

"Get…back…here…" Wolf murmured, he got up and supported his weight on the couch that stood by him. He saw Falco attempting to head for the door, however he was stopped in the hallway by the lupine's blitz-like clutch. However, the blue bird was able to roll over and take off again. He didn't care about the blood or the pain anymore, he just needed to get away from that madman.

Panic struck the avian, the realization that Wolf might kill him floated into his brain. He knew that he would in this kind of situation if he felt like it. There was a killer deep down inside Wolf, although it was put away years ago, Falco was certain that one day it would come back up with full force. The Wolf that he knew back in Star Wolf was coming to life again.

As the falcon rounded the corner toward the bridge, he ran straight into Fox, who too had been running. Falco was knocked down, leaving Fox vulnerable to Wolf, who was coming his way at full speed. By the time he reached the corner, there was no stopping him. He smashed the vulpine down onto the floor, and causing Wolf to do a head-first roll before landing violently on the ground.

The others arrived at the scene, seeing the others groaning in pain. Fox got up and dusted off his white flight suit and stared at Falco and Wolf. He showed no sympathy on his face for either of them. Far too much had been done for him to have anything positive to say about the situation. He just stood there silently, looking back and forth at the two. Everyone else seemed dumbfounded, waiting to see what happened next.

"Go to your quarters and clean up…" He sighed. "I'll speak with you two later…"


	8. All The Things I Could Say

_**Chapter Seven: All The Things I Could Say**_

**-----------------------------------------------**

Too late now,  
Afraid now,  
Of all the things I could say now,  
Its too late to,  
complain you,  
Don't deserve a word.  
NO!

Limp Bizkit - "Let It Go"

**--------------------------------------**

The confrontation had put a large haze over the entire team. Nobody spoke to one another, nobody made eye contact, and nobody was happy. The battle may have been complete, but the war was far from over. Fox had been pacing the bridge for quite some time, pondering what action should be taken. Both Wolf and Falco were extremely important parts of the team. With Falco being the best pilot by extremely unfathomable lengths, and Wolf having an amazing sense of value and trust, he would find both of them having to leave be a tough choice. While he had done it before, he knew things wouldn't go well without them. The Star Fox team was one big family, and if one member was cut off, the family would become dysfunctional. Fox didn't want that.

"God dammit guys." He thought aloud. " They had to do this now?"

His mind was clouded with the sight of the grey lupine charging at him, even if it was a mistake, it stuck with him. What exactly brought him to this point? Knowing Falco, he must have flapped his beak too much. It was the only logical explanation since Wolf rarely got that mad with someone. He kept this drilled in his mind as he stopped pacing.

Fox had reached a decision, and it wasn't what he wanted, but it was definitely in the best interests of the team. His posture became slumped and droopy. For a moment, he felt like he would tear up, but it passed. He had spilt way too many tears over much more pressing matters.

"Okay…" He sighed. "Time to do this…"

The walk to their quarters would feel like the longest journey imaginable.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wolf and Falco were brought out to the lounge by the vulpine, who was still thinking about his decision. He swiftly dismissed everyone else from the premises and took a seat on the leather couch. Neither the wolf or bird even attempted to sit, they stood nervously. Their silent breaths echoed off the walls, making them flinch.

"Okay, I honestly don't care what happened and why it happened. All I know is that it shouldn't have!" Fox stated while outstretching his arms, further emphasizing the point. " To me, you both were at fault. And I don't want to hear anything from either of you because frankly, neither of you deserve a word on this." He was stern, but hidden in all the seriousness was a small hint of sincerity. He still wasn't sure if this was the right way to go.

Falco immediately cut off any further comments. "But Fox, we were going to-"

"Falco, I just said I don't wanna hear it!" He countered back, heavily annunciating the last four words. "Something tells me your trap had something to do with this. I hate to point fingers, but I'm ninety percent certain that you provoked Wolf in some way, shape, or form!" He was belittling the avian as if he were a child who was caught stealing cookies, and Falco didn't like it. "See that's your problem, you've always had a God Complex. Your big fucking ego has made you to be the center of attention, making you think you can say whatever you feel like!"

Falco had heard enough, he let out a loud "humph" and walked toward the exit.

"Falco, get back here!" The avian replied with a feathery middle finger, making Wolf cringe with disgust. Fox placed his paws on his face and took some deep breaths. "Sometimes, I think he'll never learn."

"I know…"

"Look, just because he just got on my bad side doesn't mean you're scotch free. I don't appreciate the fact that you charged at me." Wolf held his head down in shame. "What I was going to tell you guys was that I think you two should take some time off from Star Fox, and re-evaluate your actions."

"Time off, I'm used to that phrase…" Wolf responded in a lowly tone.

"Hey, I know you don't want to but I think it would work to your benefit at least. I personally don't know about Falco." He looked over toward the window, seeing that they were soon to be approaching the Cornerian atmosphere. "What hurts so much, is that I believed him to be a true friend. But now, I just think he's fallen back into his old habits." The lupine couldn't help but think the same for himself, everything was coming full circle. He feared that soon enough, it would be unstoppable.

"You know, I had a dream a few days ago. It wasn't exactly a nightmare, but it had the qualities of one. I was at the edge of a cliff, and Krystal was with me. She was in her tribal clothing that she had when I first met her. It was an odd sight to behold if I do say so…but that's only the tip of the iceberg…"

"What happened?"

"Well, she turned to me and asked me a simple phrase: "Are you ready to fall in?". I didn't know what she meant, but I said yes. Before I knew it, I could feel her paw pressing against me, putting force on my chest. Suddenly, I was falling away from her!" Wolf was astonished at the detailed description of the dream.

"She pushed you off the cliff?"

"Yeah, and when I woke up, I realized what she meant." He looked the lupine straight in the eye. "She wanted to know that I was prepared to go on without her." The vulpine placed a paw on Wolf, taking in a deep breath.

"Are you ready to fall in Wolf?"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fox told the team to remain isolated from one another until they landed. Everyone obeyed those orders and began to pack up for their trip to the headquarters, save two of them. By the time the Great Fox III had arrived, it was late at night with stars twinkling all around them. They walked down the ramp toward General Pepper who was fitted in his usual red suit decorated with numerous medals and ranks.

"Evening gentlemen." He barked while saluting the team, completely unaware of what had occurred. "How was the trip back?" Fox looked back at the general uneasily.

"Eventful…" Fox grumbled.

"Well, I'm sure that it was all sorted out. I just wanted to see that everyone got back okay. So I'll see you all at the HQ in an hour."

"Well actually General…" Fox interrupted. " We'll be two short. Falco and Wolf are on temporary leave." There was an awkward silence, everyone seemed to freeze at the remark. Tension hung in the air as the team waited for the general's response.

"I see…" Was all he could say. He was at a loss for words.

"We'll see you in a bit. We need a moment with our departing party first though."

Wolf and Falco could see that the rest of the team had turned around. They exchanged glances for what felt like an eternity. While the two of them made sure not to look at each other, they would end up glancing in the corner of their eyes to make sure the latter wasn't.

"Well, are you just gonna stand there, or say something?" Falco snapped.

"Oh my god, not this again." Wolf said, lightly tapping his head.

"Blow it out your ass wolfy."

"Falco, ENOUGH!" Fox demanded, the team was in awe at the frustration of their captain.

"Fuck you guys!" He stormed off, not giving a care about the team or what they had to say. The avian never looked back at what he believed to be the faces of death that would greet him. But in reality, everyone was somber and silent. Nobody could speak, it was all too much for them.

"I'll see you guys later…" Wolf uttered before walking off toward home.

"Wait!" Fox interjected.

"What?"

"Good luck…" The lupine turned back and grinned at the vulpine. He would need all the luck he could get.


	9. DogEatDog

_**Chapter Eight: DogEatDog**_

_**Authors Note: EXTREMELY SHORT CHAPTER INCOMING!**_

_**THINK OF IT AS AN INTERLUDE!**_

**----------------------------------------------------**

Dear God do you want to tear your knuckles down  
And hold yourself

Dear God can you climb off that tree  
Meat in the shape of a 'T'

Dear God the paper says you were the King  
In the black limousine

Dear John and all the King's men  
Can't put you head together again

Before the bullets  
Before the flies  
Before authorities take out my eyes  
The only smiling are you dolls that I made  
But you are plastic and so are your brains

Marilyn Manson - "GodEatGod"

-------------------------------------------------

_Location Unknown_

A hound sat in an old and dusty armchair, paws clasped together. In front of him was a slowly burning fire made of old newspapers with the headline **"WURZ ASSASINATED BY MERC. VON HIEDRICH BANISHED FROM BESDOLORE!"** written across them and dried wood. With the help from Michael Drescher, his plan to assassinate Ulrich Wurz had been a great success. Being the body double for Friedrich Sturm worked perfectly into their hands, tricking Otto von Hiedrich into killing his own men.

With their hideout being compromised, it was decided that they would have to destroy it and all the evidence of their findings. It had been planned for months now. With all the authority members investigating the premise, they could use the explosives to his advantage.

In the corner of his eye, the man noticed another greyhound like him walk into the room. Their bodies were almost mirror images of each other. When he turned to have a look, he saw that it was Michael, now dressed in the dark blue vest that The Great Line was known for wearing. He looked towards the flames as it crackled.

"Gunter…" He muttered, his Germanic accent still heavy.

"Ah, Michael. How did the preparations go?"

"Everything is set, we armed the bombs twenty minutes ago. They're set to go off…" He looked down at his watch. "In about five minutes."

"Perfect, Friedrich will be happy to hear that." Gunter reached down below his seat and grabbed a box of cigars and took one out, lighting it with the fire that was beginning to die down. "In fact, I honestly have never met the guy before." He inhaled the fumes of the cigar before letting it all go in the exhale.

"Yes you have…" Michael noted.

"Really, when?"

"Now…" He turned to see Michael now holding a blaster in his hand.

"Wait!" The canine pulled the trigger back, allowing the laser to strike Gunter in the chest. He fell back over the armrest and onto the cold floor. His heart was beating rapidly, making his head swell with each thump. Michael stood above his body now, smiling menacingly. He knelt down and placed the gun in Gunter's mouth.

"I'd like to thank you for assisting me, it was a pleasure doing business with you." He chuckled. "But, now that you're no longer of assistance to me, there's only one way out of this." He waved at the canine, who was trying to speak, but the gun muffled his pleas for mercy. Within a matter of moments, his life was extinguished. Friedrich stood back up and calmly wiped off some of the blood on his gun, as if nothing had happened.

"Besdolore will be mine…"


	10. A Deal

_**Chapter Nine: A Deal[er]**_

_**Authors Note:**_

_**It's pronounced; Coh-urt**_

-------------------------------------------

Turn it up, I never want to go home  
I only want to be part of your breakdown  
She got caught by the four on the floor  
It picked her up and she'll never get let down  
And now I can't stop thinking about it  
All you people at the top don't know nothing about it  
We don't give a fuck what the price is so just leave us to our own devices  
And we'll leave you alone

+44 - "When Your Heart Stops Beating"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_The Junkyard's _failing engine had forced Otto to make an emergency landing in one of the most hostile planets in the area; Bothsiloth. A once flourishing planet that had been taken over by the infamous mob boss Hammerhead Orglich. Hammerhead was a vicious swine whose jet black skin matched his soul. His rise to power brought forth a horrid amount of pollution that made life on the planet practically unsustainable without some sort of oxygen mask.

Upon arrival, Otto was recruited to work for the Orglich's. He didn't protest it, to him, it was a way to make money for repairs. However, it became very clear that the engine wasn't the only thing that needed to be fixed. _The Junkyard _had literally given up on him. Things had looked bad for the canine, and it didn't help matters when the stress was too much for him and he decided to start smoking pot. His mind was in a continuously clouded state that couldn't be removed.

However, there was a small speckle of hope awaiting him…

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Otto was sitting at a table in a run down restaurant. The doors outside had been sealed shut to allow the shady patrons to be able to take off their masks that were needed to breathe on the planet. In the canine's hand was a bottle of alcohol, which he swished around and observed the liquid sloshing around. The room was smoky and not exactly welcoming, but then again, nothing on the planet was.

The canine had grown weary while waiting for his meal that he ordered half an hour ago. He decided that it would be a good time for a pick-me-up. He stood up and swiftly moved toward the bathroom, not caring who saw. Once inside, he shoved his paw into his trench coat pocket and pulled out a baggie of already rolled joints. Otto always had them ready so he didn't have to take his sweet ass time putting it in the paper, rolling, and licking it.

He took one out, and put it to his muzzle, while with the other paw, taking a lighter out and igniting the tip. He took a long drag, and held it in before coughing it out. It would be a few more hits before it began to take effect so he decided to speed it up and take another.

"You know, I could get you arrested for doing that shit…" A raspy voice said from behind him. Otto coughed up all the smoke he inhaled in total shock.

_Shit, I knew I forgot something._

The canine turned around and saw a grey rat about a foot shorter than himself. An elongated red scar went across his face, making him have a bit of a tribal look to him. Otto took his joint and casually tossed it on the floor, and stomped it out.

"Happy?" He replied sarcastically.

"Hah! I was kidding buddy, I smoke that shit too." This irritated Otto, he had just wasted a good joint on a joke.

"Man fuck you, that's not cool." He growled.

"Sorry bout' that. Besides, you got plenty more."

"True…" He took out another and lit up. "Want a hit?" He offered the joint to the rat. He hastily accepted and let the Technicolor dreamscape take over him.

"So, you got a name?" Otto questioned.

"Name's Co'ort, your neighborhood junkie, at your service." He outstretched his claw.

"Otto von Hiedrich…" He was about to shake Co'ort's hand but he drew it away looking at the dog with much curiosity.

"Are you that guy who-"

"NO!" He interjected. "Well, according to them I am…"

"Explain…"

So he did, he told Co'ort all about his mission that he was given on Besdolore to save Ulrich Wurz, only to be double crossed by Michael Drescher. He tried to kill the traitor afterward but failed in doing so, and was apprehended, and banished from his home. So here he was, an outcast that was wandering the galaxy alone.

"Welcome to Bothsiloth Otto, pretty much everyone here is in the same situation as you."

An epiphany struck Otto. "Well then, I assume you know a lot of people around here correct?" Co'ort cocked his head, wondering what he wanted.

"Yes…" He nervously responded.

"Any mechanics?"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After a short walk across the Bothsilithian landscape, Otto and Co'ort had reached their destination. It was a old and rusted warehouse in the middle of an arid desert. The rat took out a set of keys and placed them in the lock covering the door. Before entering, he turned around to make sure nobody was around.

"Shut the door quickly on your way in, the atmosphere will kill the others before they even have a chance to cry for help…" With that said, he opened the door and rushed in with Otto following suit. They both pushed on the door as quick as they could and sealed it shut.

"Good work." Co'ort mentioned as he began to take off his mask. The small cup shaped apparatus was connected via hoses to a large tank of oxygen that could supply one with at least three days of breathable air. They were introduced shortly after the harmful effects of the pollution were noticed.

The sound of footsteps could be heard in the distance.

"Who's there?" A voice reverberated off the walls, making Otto jump.

"It's me! And I brought someone."

The lights came on, temporarily blinding the canine. When his eyes readjusted, he found in front of him three other people. On Otto's far left was a black lupine who looked to be in his early twenties. He wore a old and ratty blue shirt and some jean shorts. Half hidden behind some machinery was a swine who had seemed to have a major eating problem, being of a heavy build. The pig wore a white tank top and jeans, giving him a mafia look similar to the men he worked for. He snorted loudly as he examined the new visitor. And lastly, was a red vulpine that seemed to be the oldest of the group. There were some nasty bags under his eyes, making Otto assume he hadn't slept in some time.

"Who's the new guy?" The wolf asked.

"This is Otto guys, and I believe that he needs our assistance." Co'ort replied. The wolf and pig quickly talked amongst one another.

"What kind of help?" The pig questioned, once again snorting after completing his sentence.

"Can you build a ship?"

"Yeah, but what's in it for us?"

"A chance at freedom, and revenge…" Everyone looked at one another for a moment, thinking about what the hound had just said. After some nodding, the pig spoke up again.

"We're in…"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once Otto had been able to settle into his new home, he was able to find out more about his new found friends. The black wolf's name was Teveroth Sparks and was the youngest member of the group at only twenty one years of age. He ended up on Bothsiloth due to an unmentioned technicality that left him with no money. He also revealed that he was once a part of the army on his home planet of Yaidvin- a planet that just like Bothsiloth had become a corrupt planet, filled with nothing but death and anarchy.

Lars Harburg, the obese swine had lived on Bothsiloth before it went to hell. Contrary to Otto's belief, Lars was not a member of the Orglich family, he truly despised them and the work they did. He recalled a peaceful world with people that seemed to be content with everything. According to him, the changes that occurred were almost instantaneous and fatal. Apparently over half the population was killed from the changes in the atmosphere, he survived due to the fact that he was able to find small pockets of clean air until oxygen masks were handed out. Since then, he's been hiding from Orglich's goons after a confrontation with one of them.

The last one in the group was Andre Cooker. The vulpine was a native of the farming planet of Natsumir. He seemed to be the quiet one of the group, always keeping himself rather secluded from the rest. Co'ort told Otto there was no reason to suspect anything from him, he was extremely trustworthy and along with Lars, was one of the founding members of this group of nobodies. The rat also noted there were four previous members that were all killed by the mob. They seemed to hold a grudge against these guys, so Otto thought that he should keep his mouth shut about him working for them.

And since he didn't really know much about Co'ort, he decided to find out a bit more about him. Turns out that the rat ended up on Bothsiloth a somewhat similar way as Otto. He was double crossed in a drug trafficking ring that spanned the galaxy and was forced to flee on his own. To this day, he remains paranoid that they're still watching him. It was more or less likely the drugs fault for that.

"So guys, how long should it take to get everything set?" Otto asked while searching through some rubble for spare parts.

"Well first, we need to get everything, which could take weeks, and actually building it could take months depending on how large you want the ship to be." Lars said.

"It needs to fit all of us if that helps you at all…"

The pig chuckled and took out some large sheets of paper. "Well that's pretty vague." He began to sketch some designs for the ship. "I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks…"

Otto walked away from the swine, wondering how this would all work out. Orglich would eventually wonder where he was and hunt him down. For now, that wouldn't be a problem. When the time did come however, he wanted to be sure that he would be prepared to fight them off. But what if his new friends found out about him working for them? This was what he feared most. If he could keep that a secret at least until they left the planet, then he would be able to sleep easily. While on the outside, he didn't show any signs of strain, the inside was the complete opposite. These were people who had extremely dark stories to tell and would not hesitate to kill him if they knew he worked for their adversaries.

So instead of crack under pressure, he decided to take a breather and hide his fears deep inside of him with a simple piece of rolled up paper filled with green herbs. He breathed the fumes in and let them carry him away from the world he knew.

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_Corneria City_

Falco sat on the steps of his beach house, which he had recently gained full control of after renting it for a decade. The true effects of his actions were now coming at him full force. He knew that he had done wrong, but he wasn't prepared to say sorry. His stubbornness had once again consumed him. He picked up his phone and began to dial a number. After putting the receiver to his face, he waited as the phone rang.

"Pick up…" He muttered.

…

A laid back female voice came from the other end of the line. "Hey, you've reached Erika Hawksmund's phone, I'm probably on a mission or unavailable right now but if you leave a message I'll see if I can reach ya soon."

"Fuck…"

There was a beep.

"Hey, Erika it's Falco. I was at the party in Zoness. I recall you saying that you would be in Corneria this week so I was wondering if we could hang out sometime. It's kind of important, I have no one else to go to. Call me soon okay, talk to you later…"

The avian hung up and walked into his home, looking defeated for the first time.


	11. Tension

**_Chapter Ten: Tension_**

--------------------------------------------------

Remember when I took you up to the top of the hill?  
We had our knives drawn.  
They were as sharp  
As we were in love.  
If God crossed us  
We'd take all his drugs,  
Burn his money  
And his house down,  
And wait for the fire to spread.

Sometimes hate is not enough  
To turn this all to ashes.  
Together as one  
Against all others  
Break all of their wings to  
Make sure it crashes

Marilyn Manson - "Running To The Edge Of The World"

--------------------------------------------------------

_Here I am…_

Wolf stood at his doorway, trying to put the keys into the hole, but being stopped each time by his conscious. He wanted to make sure that he knew what to say to Serena and when to say it.

_Just blurt it out, get it over with…No I couldn't do that to her._

The thought of how she would react tore at him like a knife opening up a stitched wound. If she didn't forgive him, he would have no one to live and die for. He could only hope for the best like his commander did.

_Perhaps this is just a hurdle for us to jump over? Could I get through this clean? Only one way to find out…_

The lupine took a few deep breaths to ready himself, and unlocked the door. He pushed the door open and peered inside. The place had looked the same as it did when he left Corneria City a few months prior. To his left was the kitchen that was connected to the living room just ahead of him, still filled with the black leather couch and lush carpeting that at one point was covered in his own blood. Still, there was someone missing from the scene…

Something further down the hall caught his eye, it was a long tabletop with numerous photographs on it. He studied them and saw that they were mostly pictures from his wedding and honeymoon. One specific picture seemed to catch his attention, it wasn't from either event though. The picture was rather simple, just him and Serena sitting underneath a tree, the lupine had a hat on and was pushing the bill down to his eyes so he could sleep. Serena was resting peacefully on his shoulder, she seemed very content with everything.

Wolf remembered that day, it was before the two were even engaged. Panther took the picture when he wasn't looking. He was pissed at first, but after looking at it, he thanked him for taking it.. They spent most of that day on the hill that the tree was located, talking about the city and it's inhabitants. He wished he could go back in time to that tree so he could relive those times. Life was simple, with no real issues that got in his way.

Suddenly, he heard a flush emanating from his room. Wolf's heart went into his throat. He stood paralyzed, not knowing what to do. A door opened and out of it came Serena, wearing a black tank top and tight jeans. Her bangs were no longer white, they had been dyed red shortly after being wed. The same went with the tip of her tail, which now looked like a brush with crimson paint splotched on it.

"Wolf!" She said ecstatically, embracing her husband. He wanted to back away from her, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He held onto her like his life depended on it.

"Hey Serena." The lupine quietly whispered into her ear. His whole body was trembling, he knew that he couldn't last much longer without losing it. Serena sensed that there was something troubling him, and looked up at him, trying to read his face. She couldn't tell what it was.

"You look upset Wolf, what's wrong?" He attempted to say something, but instead all that came was a stream of tears. Wolf collapsed into her arms, having lost all control of himself.

"I hate to do this to you Serena…" He sniffled. "But I can't keep this from you."

"Keep what from me?"

"I-" He stumbled over his words, drowning them in his constant weeping. "I slept with someone on Zoness…" He pulled himself away from Serena, who had gone silent. He couldn't bear to look at her, he was afraid if he did, she would turn him to stone.

Serena stood there, unsure how to react. The somber guise made her think he regretted it and wished to know more. But with any situation like this, she couldn't help but feel betrayed. The person who had vowed to remain faithful to her had broken his promise. It was as though her heart was ripped out of her chest and squashed to bits.

"Wolf…I…Why?" He turned around and looked right into her tear filled eyes.

"I was drunk Serena, I had no idea what happened until I woke up the next morning." The lupine began to slowly caress her arm in a comforting manner. "I need you to know I never meant to do it…" Serena took a moment to further examine his explanation and cleared her throat.

"I can't forgive you that easy…"

"I know, and I will go to the edge of the world to make you forgive me." It was silent again, it may have been a few seconds or a few minutes but it felt like forever.

"Even if I could forgive you, I don't see how we could go on any longer." She walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water. "You're always in space, and I never get to see you."

"But I send you-"

"THAT'S NOT THE SAME!" She cried out, allowing more tears to fall to the floor. Her breathing was fierce and labored. "I can never see you in person. You have no clue how much I missed being in your arms. No idea how much I missed seeing you smile." And without any notice, she dropped the bombshell on him. "I LOVED YOU!" She buried her face in her paws, and screamed into them.

Loved. She had once loved him. And with the recent turn of events, she wasn't sure if she could love him anymore. The words put Wolf into a state of utter shock and bewilderment. It almost felt like a dream to him. He slumped himself against the wall and held his head down, as if he was in mourning.

"I still love you Serena…" She wouldn't budge however, she had been taken beyond the point of no return. "I think I'm going to head out for a little while, I feel like talking to someone I haven't seen in a while…" The lupine stood up and headed for the door, she said nothing, everything had been said…

When he got outside, Wolf took out a cigarette and lit it as quick as possible. He was stressed beyond explanation and needed something to relax, but not even the idea of nicotine streaming through his system brought him down from this low. So he walked to the one place he thought he could find some sort of advice. Ironically, it was at the Cornerian Insane Asylum…


	12. The Mind of Leon Powalski

_**Chapter Eleven: The Mind Of Leon Powalski**_

_**------------------------------------**_

I am the thing that makes you sick  
I am the blame that gets placed quick  
Detect the crack within your lie

I'll be the wrath of your disdain  
I'll be the fear in you engrained  
Become the facts that you deny

I can feel this pain is real  
I hate deep down inside  
And like broken glass you'll shatter  
With bloody fists I'll batter  
Like a ten ton hammer, son

Machine Head - "Ten Ton Hammer"

-------------------------------------------

Behind a heavily guarded door laid a green chameleon wearing a straitjacket. His tongue slithered in and out of his mouth, contemplating his time alone in the asylum. Two years inside of this place had done a number on Leon Powalski, and for him, that's saying something.

_Take it, grab it, crack it, KILL it…_

At any given moment, his mind would be racing with intense thoughts of grandeur. Most of them seemed to be fucked up fantasies about death and sodomy, but with every few horrible thoughts came the interesting ones that were out of place.

_Take out my eyes so I can no longer see the abused world that is Corneria…_

The inner freak had been taking over Leon for quite some time, more so after being incarcerated inside of the ten by ten by ten room he was situated in for so long. It was bringing out the worst inside of him, leaving the orderlies no option other than to keep him isolated until he could function properly. However, he was in for a surprise today…

On the other side of the room, a slit opened up for the orderlies to communicate with them. The eyes of a red furred vixen and the legs of someone else showed up.

"Mr. Powalski, there is a visitor waiting for you…" The vixen spoke into the hole.

"AH FUCK THE VISITOR!" He cackled maniacally. The unknown person got to eye level with the opening, revealing grey fur and a single eye with the other covered by an eye patch.

"Must you be so god damn stubborn?" Wolf retorted in an obviously annoyed tone.

_WHAT?! Why the fuck is he here!?_

The door opened up and in came the lupine, still looking pissed. Leon didn't move a muscle, unsure exactly what to do. He couldn't think of any reason to why he would want to meet with him. The door shut behind them with a loud thud. They could hear as the woman paced back and forth, waiting for them finish whatever was about to occur.

"Look Wolfy, I don't know why the hell you're here." The chameleon twitched for a moment. "But I don't want you here, so make whatever this is quick!"

"What makes you think I want to be here?" He snarled back. "So how has this shithole been treating you?" He was toying with him to tick him off.

"Oh just fantastic, my psychologist says I have no hope." He laughed sadistically.

"Good riddens…"

While Wolf was interested in pestering the one man who nearly drove him to madness, he came here for a real purpose and that needed to be addressed at that very moment.

"Okay Leon, enough of the small talk, I actually wanted to speak with you about something important." The mood shifted dramatically for Wolf, while Leon seemed to remain angry, if not even further.

"OH JUST WONDERFUL! We still have our little prissy man here! God damn, four years and you're still weak." Wolf rolled his eyes at the statement and went on.

"I got married-"

"Well at least you have some saving grace to you." Leon replied sarcastically.

"-and I ended up getting drunk on Zoness."

"And you got there how?"

"The_ Great Fox III…" _

……………_TAKE IT ,GRAB IT, CRACK IT, KILL IT, TAKE IT GRAB IT CRACK IT KILL IT!_

It was exactly what he wanted to tell Leon. He had joined their enemy. The chameleon began to spas out uncontrollably and scream. Wolf actually looked shocked for his former teammate. Eventually the episode passed and he was back to himself.

"I was able to deal with all your little inconsistencies, until now! YOU JOINED STAR FOX?!" He tried to get up, but he lost his balance due to the straitjacket and slipped on the matting. "Mark my words Wolf, if I ever get out of this putrid place, I WILL KILL YOU AND ANYONE RELATED TO YOU!" His threats seemed blind to the lupine, he merely laughed them off.

"You think you're tough Leon?" He approached him and took out a cigarette. "So…fucking …tough…" He grasped Leon and pulled him up to his level. He stuck the cig in his mouth and quickly took out his lighter and lit the end while Leon squirmed in desperation. "Not so tough now are you?" He breathed the fumes in, blew them in the chameleons face, took the fag out of his mouth, and moved the lit end closer to Leon. "Remember, nobody can hear you scream…" He plunged the butt into the chameleons right eye, sending a wave of pain over him. Within moments he had lost all sight from his cornea. For the first time, Wolf saw Leon in a way he had never seen him before; hurting. He dug it further into the eye until it disintegrated. "NOW YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL!" Afterward, he threw him to the floor and watched him writhe in agony. There was some blood coming from his eyes, but for the most part, it was a large black scar that remained where his eye used to be.

The lupine once again approached Leon, smiling as he did. "You touch ANYONE, I will make sure you don't live to see the next day." While he felt so alive at this moment, he had that little voice in the back of his head that was telling him he had gone too far. But when matters like these get personal, he refused to listen to it. " So do we have an understanding?" Leon answered back by continuing his agonizing cries. "Good…" He smacked his cheek and walked out the door, shutting it before the orderly could get a chance at looking inside. Back in the cell however, Leon was thinking something unexpected...

_Thank you...My dream came true..._

However, the moment was interupted by his normal self.

_But I swear, I will get out of here!_

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Wolf walked home, a few thoughts danced around him. Leon's expected reaction to his joining of Star Fox had made him wonder if he could actually go on with Serena and Star Fox simultaneously. He wasn't even sure if she would take him back after what happened. He would have to talk it over with her before anything happened. He wanted to make sure that it was in their best interests.

But for now, Wolf continued down the street, not regretting anything he had just done…

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**Authors Note:**

**Okay, I had to make a note here because this has to be one of my favorite chapters I've written…ever! I knew that this would be a good one when I planned out the story a few weeks ago, but it really went above and beyond my expectations!**

**And now for another note, the rating for the story as you can see, has been changed to M for reasons that will be very obvious in the next chapter. I decided to add it in mainly because it seemed like it would work well for the chapter. I'll probably take a short break before starting the story back up (but knowing me, you shouldn't trust that statement. I'll probably have another chapter up within the next two days :P)**

**Oh, and also if you're reading the story, can you please review it. It's kind of getting on my nerves that I get so many views but no feedback on what can be improved. If you send in just one review and never review another chapter, you will still gain my respect for listening to me :D**


	13. Where It Hurts The Most

_**Chapter Twelve: Where It Hurts The Most**_

_**Authors Warning:**_

_**The following chapter contains sexual content and a bold mark will be made where it starts and stops, viewer discretion is advised.**_

If love's the word that you say  
Say it, and I will listen

Angels and Airwaves "Start The Machine"

"_I was going to tell you something last night, but then all that shit happened."_

"_Well…what is it?"_

_Wolf moved Serena over to the loveseat and sat her down, he followed suit._

"_I just wanted to tell you that the past two weeks with you have been the greatest two weeks of my entire life. You've given me hope when I was hopeless, we've shared our pain together and fought our way through them, and most important, you've given me somebody to love…I love you Serena." He gently kissed her on the lips._

_Serena was at loss for words, she wasn't exactly sure how to react. So instead she just did the first thing that came to mind; cry. She let out tears of joy, falling right onto the lupines shoulder. He comforted her, lightly petting her head, allowing his fingers to glide through her hair with relative ease. _

"_I love you too." She replied amid the tears._

She was sitting alone in the dark save for the small lamp next to her, weeping to herself while thinking about that faithful moment, and looking at the picture of them by the tree. Serena's tears landed on the glass that protected the photograph, forming a small puddle. She knew that it would be impossible to move on from this. She knew that she had to break it to Wolf if he ever returned, part of her wished he didn't.

But he did, standing behind her as she continued to cry. The lupine hated to see her like this, it was obvious this was going to be tough for both of them. He came in close to her and wrapped his arms around her belly. She didn't react at all, like nothing happened.

"Are you still mad at me?" The question was rhetorical in some way, but she answered back anyway.

"Of course I am." Serena whimpered. "But I don't want to be." She rested her head against his, allowing him to wipe away her tears. "I just don't know if I can trust that this won't happen again."

"Are you saying that-"

"Yes Wolf…" They both died a little on the inside that very moment.

"I understand…" He replied without emotion, it was as if all feeling was ripped out of him. "Where will you go?" He asked, with a bit more concern.

"I don't know yet."

"That's fine, you can have the apartment."

Serena's eyes widened, she was being given a home that was owned by her husband. He was giving up all he had for her. It was an amazing showing of sincerity that touched her. She began to bawl up again.

"But Wolf, where will you go?"

Now he was beginning to cry again. "I'll figure it out, trust me."

"I can't accept this Wolf."

"Let it be a reminder of the good times we had Serena. Coming back here is just too much for me." She turned around and embraced her lupine lover. While she didn't see it, she could feel Wolf smiling for her. It was everything that she missed about him. But even now, there was no turning back on her decision.

"I lied Wolf." She sighed. "I still love you." This brought both of them over the edge and now the floodgates had been breached.

"I always have, and always will love you Serena." They continued their embrace as the moonlight poured in through the windows.

**Viewer Discretion Advised**

No sooner had they been standing there were they locked in a deep and passionate kiss. Wolf knew this would be the last time he would make love to his wife, and wanted to make sure it wasn't for pleasure, it was to show that he cared deeply for Serena. There was no animal inside him now, just a broken soul.

The lupine clumsily took his jacket and shirt off while Serena threw her shoes across the living room. Their slow trek to the bed was without some humor, as Wolf smacked his head against the side of the doorframe, making them both erupt into laughter before continuing with their embrace.

"Pill?" Wolf mumbled while kissing her neck.

"Yeah…" She responded while taking her pants off.

They landed on the bed and continued to strip down to nothing, neither were even ready to actually begin. They both seemed content enough to just stay just the way they were. But eventually the time came and Wolf got on top of Serena, landing another kiss on her forehead.

"Do you remember the first time Wolf?" Serena asked."Yeah, why?"

"…Count em' down." He looked back and tried to remember what she meant.

"…_Like rocket's eh Serena?" He said with a smile. She responded the same way._

"_Well then I'll show you rockets!" He exclaimed laughing._

"As you wish." He could feel more tears coming. "T-minus ten, nine, eight-" She could see them falling onto his grey fur now. "-five, four, three, two…" He stumbled, trying to stop himself from crying, and took a deep breath. "…One…" He said with a bit of a high pitched voice as more tears came as he entered her. The warmness relaxed him, stopping his tears. He allowed himself to gently fall into Serena's arms and they began.

While with Serena, Wolf had learned to be more passionate in bed and not just a crazed sex animal that he once was. However, this time something dramatically changed in him. It was as though he brought the infatuation up a notch. He would whisper little haiku's of sorts into her ears, and kiss her in every place imaginable. It was like Wolf's last meal, and he wanted to make the best of it for him and her.

During the coitus, Wolf began to hear a light whimper. He stopped what he was doing, worried that he was hurting Serena and nuzzled her.

"Are you okay Serena?" He asked, panting.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It just hurts knowing after this, it's over…" He didn't know what so say, so he pecked her cheek and continued on.

The two went on for what felt like hours, not even tiring each other out. And it all came to a headway as Wolf was about to end it.

"I'm almost there Serena, but I don't want to be." He murmured.

"It's okay Wolf, I'm almost done too."

What a way to go out, together. He took a tight hold on Serena and locked lips with her, never letting them leave. He began to thrust once more, not holding back now. All things come to and end, and for them it ended with a bang. The rocket's had lifted off, and there was no turning back anymore. With a last thrust, they climaxed together, locking themselves into each other. When it was all over, the two looked into each others eyes and could see their respective reflections in them. Another tear formed in the lupine's purple ocular and fell onto Serena's breast.

_No more tears Wolf._ He thought. _Just say the words one last time..._

"I love you..."

**Safe**

Later in the night, when Serena was asleep holding onto Wolf tightly, the lupine was still awake and couldn't fall asleep. His mind had been running like mad since they finished. His life was flashing before his eye, from the moment he was born to the present day. It was a review of his memories. Some were happy, some were sad, but they all remained fixed inside of him for one reason or another. This was no different, he kept this moment in his head because it would be all he had to remember her by. He didn't want to take any pictures or belongings with him, being reminded of her would just make him hurt more.

He looked down and saw Serena slumbering on his chest, her red bangs were blowing lightly in the wind from the open window, he brushed his hand through it. He would miss stroking her hair and gliding through it with his paw. He also saw on both his and her finger was their wedding rings. It showed that for now, they were still one, but only for a single day. By this time tomorrow, he would be gone from her life and starting a new one, hopefully with the Star Fox team again. It was what he really needed now, someone to talk to. But there was nobody now, just himself. And being alone, as Fox once told him was a horrible thing. He began to cry, allowing the reality of the situation to come to fruition. Eventually, his light whimpers lulled himself to sleep, and away from the problems he faced.


	14. The Letter

_**Chapter Thirteen: The Letter**_

------------------------------------

Mama, she has taught me well  
Told me when I's young  
Son, your life's an open book  
Don't close it 'fore it's done  
The brightest flame burns quickest  
That's what I heard her say  
A son's heart's owed to mother  
But I must find my way

Metallica - "Mama Said"

----------------------------------

Falco was sitting by his liquor cabinet, resting his eyes. He didn't have any intention of drinking anything from it, but being near it gave him peace of mind for some reason. It was one of those enigmatic things that can't be answered. The moon hung high in the sky, letting its bright white light enter the beach house from the all glass front. Numerous scars and bruises were now clearly visible on the avian's face, having given them time to form following the altercation.

Falco's eyes were pried open by the sound of something banging on the glass that interrupted the normal sounds of crashing waves. He turned his head to the left and saw Erika Hawksmund standing behind it, giving him a friendly wave. The red feathered bird had a gelled up fauxhawk that was fringed at the tip. On her person were some navy blue jeans that looked a little ratty, a red t-shirt covered by a green jacket. Her hazel colored eyes stared right into Falco's ocean blue.

"Hey Falco." She responded sweetly as he opened the door for her.

"Yo, thanks Erika, I'm glad you were able to come over here." He sighed. "I literally have nobody to talk to so I thought "What the hell, might as well try you."."

"Well thanks, it's been a bit of a drag since my little scouting mission on Zoness."

"Come on in…"

The two of them situated themselves in the kitchen, sitting down at the round wooden table situated in the corner. Falco got themselves a glass of water and set them down, making a loud "clank" echo through the room.

"Soooo, what's the problem?" She inquired while sipping her water.

"Well, one of our pilots got into some trouble and I kind of got into an argument with him. Fox told us off afterward." Erika didn't reply immediately, she expected more to come after it, but it never did.

"That's it?" He nodded back. "Umm, this seems like an open and closed situation. I assume you did something to cause this fight?" Falco didn't exactly answer back, but he did let a grunt escape his beak.

"Oh come on Falco. I think that this is one of those moments where you should man up and take some responsibility here." She placed a hand on his shoulder, causing the avian to stare over her way. "Do you really think you can just run away from your problems?"

"Maybe you're right Erika, I'll have to make amends with Wolf and the team some time soon. But for now, I think I'm gonna sleep it off." He felt kind of guilty for bringing her over on such short notice for a rather quick conversation. "Do you need a ride home?"

"Well, since I'm almost always actively moving from one place to another, I technically don't have anywhere to stay. I just got here today and haven't checked into any hotel yet so yeah…" Falco took her now empty glass and brought it over to the sink.

"Well I could save you the money and let you stay here. The couch in the living room folds out into a bed. I won't mind." Erika smiled at him and accepted the offer, which to her was a gesture that may or may not have suggested something more. This was not the reason Falco had in mind, but whatever the reason, she was happy since she would be free of the financial burden of staying in a crappy room.

"Thanks Falco…"

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_Near Corneria_

The engines of the _Great Fox III _hummed along at a steady pace while most of the team slept in their quarters. However, two remained awake. In the lounge, Fox and Peppy were sitting by the television, looking at the blank screen. They hadn't spoken much since they were given their briefing for their recon mission on Fortuna. In fact, an odd silence had fallen over the team since Wolf and Falco parted.

Fox decided to break the silence. "Man, there's been so much shit happening, it's almost like the team is tearing itself apart." The hare began to twiddle his thumbs in thought.

"You know, when it was me, your father, and Pigma, I remembered so many times where Pigma and I would get into altercations and your father would be the peacemaker. Sometimes it would work , and sometimes it didn't. But in the end, we were all apart of the Star Fox team. Things like this will work out eventually." The talks about days past were becoming a common occurrence between the two of them, bringing forth great stories and the shedding of joyful tears.

"It's still hard to believe that it's been thirteen years since it all happened."

"To think you were a cocky eighteen year old," Peppy let out a great laugh that made him grab his side. "and now you're thirty one, and the leader of one of the finest groups of mercenaries I've ever seen. Things change so fast…" Fox himself was shocked as well with all the things he had done since his fathers passing. He had truly lived up to his fathers expectations.

"Peppy, you know that I never did open up that letter you gave me all those years back." Peppy looked up at Fox with curiosity. It was a letter from his father that was given to Peppy by James during his escape from Venom. It was passed on to Fox shortly after the news of his fathers passing. The two of them got up and went to the vulpine's quarters, where he opened up a safe located under his bed. Inside was a crinkled envelope that seemed to be thicker than usual, something else must have been inside.

"Open it…"

Fox slowly tore at the edge, making sure not to tear at whatever was inside. When it finally came open, he carefully dumped the contents out onto his bed. Out of the envelope came a pair of black shades that were once worn by his own father, and a letter that had seen better days. The sight of the shades alone brought the vulpine to tears. It had been so long since he had seen a single possession of his fathers, and this was the most iconic. He unfolded the paper and began to read the contents that were hastily scribbled inside.

_My Son,_

_If you are reading this, I regret to inform you that it's probably too late for me. I was betrayed by my own teammate and have been taken prisoner by Andross. As much as I would like to go into detail about this, I don't have much time and I need to tell you some important things that you need to know._

_Peppy has been my best friend for so many years, and I want you to treat him as if he was family. He will be the closest thing you will have. I want him to see you grow up into a great man who one day leads the greatest galactic militia in the entire Lylat System. If I can't live to see it happen, make sure he does. Your life is an open book Fox, don't close it before it's done._

_You know that I have been a very busy man for quite some time, and I need you to know I have always tried my best to make sure you came first. Since Vixey's passing, it's been tough looking after you while trying to make a living as a merc. While I may not have said it to you enough through your childhood, I think now could be the last chance I get to say it. I love you son. A fathers love for his son never dies, no matter what the circumstances. Just remember one thing; never give up and trust your instincts. You'll make it through, that's what a McCloud knows what to do. I wish I could write more, but time is my enemy. Remember these words Fox…_

_Dad_

Fox quietly folded the letter back up and put his head down, eyeing the shades that he contemplated on wearing.

"I won't father…" He sobbed while falling into Peppy's arms, much like he did those thirteen years ago.

"James taught you well Fox…" The hare mumbled while tightly gripping Fox. These were the moments that Fox missed, the moments that reminded him he still had someone who cared.


	15. A Final Sunrise

_**Chapter Fourteen: A Final Sunrise**_

----------------------------------------------------

How many special people change?  
How many lives are living strange?  
Where were you while we were getting high?  
Slowly walking down the hall  
Faster than a cannonball  
Where were you while we were getting high?

Someday you will find me  
Caught beneath the landslide  
In a champagne supernova in the Sky  
Some day you will find me  
Caught beneath the landslide  
In a champagne supernova  
A champagne supernova in the sky

Oasis - "Champagne Supernova"

------------------------------------------

Morning, usually an uplifting time of the day. The time where bright new day begins. This, was the complete opposite for Wolf and Serena O'Donnell. It was a depressing time, and one where it would all end. The first to wake was Serena, who had noticed dried tears on the lupines face. She didn't want to wake him, hoping that he was dreaming of them together still. While they may have unofficially split up, she still cared for him, and didn't want to ruin his dreamscape.

She went outside to watch the sun rise like she normally did. It would be the last one with Wolf around, even if he wasn't there to see it. She wanted to cherish it as if it were a childhood possession, making sure she could find a bit of happiness before it all came crashing down.

"It's for the best Serena…" She thought aloud while standing on the edge of the railing. "It'll be okay."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Wolf and Serena sat on the stoop of their apartment building, looking at the traffic that sped by them. He had waited for this moment for a long time now, and thankfully the dreary weather had cleared up from the previous day. It was exactly how Wolf wanted it._

_However, a problem immediately struck the lupine. He wasn't sure how to initiate the conversation leading into this moment. So he decided to wing it._

"_So, how's your day been?" He suddenly emoted._

_**SHIT! Already off to a bad start Wolf, take it easy…**_

"_You've seen me all day Wolf, you should know that I'm fine."_

_**AGH SHE KNOWS SOMETHING'S UP!**_

"_Of course, I just wanted to be sure." He nervously smiled while messing around with his eye patch._

_**Stop touching that! Jesus man, you're losing it! Keep cool.**_

"_I guess it's the thought that counts." Serena whispered while quickly pecking Wolf's cheek, causing his tail to wag excitedly._

"_Well umm, I actually was asking you because…"_

_**Yes…**_

"_I wanted to know…"_

_**Keep it going!**_

"_If you…"_

_**FINISH IT!**_

_He swiftly got on one knee as if it were involuntary and grabbed a box out of his pocket._

"_Marry me Serena." He opened the box, revealing a huge diamond ring. Serena jumped up in surprise, hypnotized by the glittery rock._

_**Nailed it!**_

"_Serena?" He looked concerned as she hadn't answered. She shook her head, trying to snap out of her trance._

"_Oh Wolf, of course I will…"_

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His eyes sprung open, waking up from his moment of bliss. He wished it had gone further but it was fine with him. It was a shame that it had all been for nothing. He quickly got on a pair of boxers and lazily walked toward the sliding door, where he expected to see Serena preparing to watch the sunrise. Sure enough, it was where she was. She didn't feel Wolf's presence until he was right behind her. His shallow breathing made her want to turn around, but she felt like now wouldn't be the best time for that.

_I can't just leave like this, this is too awkward._

"Serena, can't we just enjoy this final sunrise together?" His words were so sincere, and he was right. If they were going to end this violently, it would have already happened. She gave in and let Wolf wrap his arms around her. Their soft fur kept them both warm as Solar began to rise in the East, making the sky turn a radiant orange hue.

"Our last sunrise Wolf…" She mumbled. He didn't respond back and probably didn't hear her anyway. Instead, he turned her around.

"If this is the last time I'm going to see you, can I see you smile?" He began to tear up with each word, as awkward as it was, she was able to crack a smile for him. He replied with the same look and pressed his muzzle against hers. They stood in their embrace for about thirty seconds before breaking themselves free.

"Thank you." Wolf said with tears in his eyes, replacing the dried ones from the previous night.

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_Falco stood in the middle of a field as rain poured down on him. He found the location to be oddly familiar but he couldn't seem to put a finger on where he was or why he was there. _

"_What the fuck?" _

_Suddenly the sun came out and lit the area in a bright yellow halo, but the rain kept coming. Upon closer inspection, the avian saw that the stars were visible high in the sky, some even brighter than Solar. This strange and alternate universe seemed to be playing with his mind, bringing forth confusion and delirium. It was when he turned around and saw the cliff face up ahead that he realized where he was, a place that he would rather forget._

"_Why am I here?!" He begged, falling to his knee's. "I don't want to see this again!" _

_What he was about to see had apparently been something traumatic and unsettling, it was bringing the avian to uncontrollable sobs. He shut his eyes and covered his ears, not wanting to witness anything._

_But nothing came, it was silent and still. Falco looked around to make sure nobody was around. When he felt that it was safe, he got up onto his feet again, seeing that his pants had grown muddy from the rain and began to walk into the unknown._

_**Why the hell is this happening anyway? **__He thought. Apparently somebody heard him, because from behind his back came a voice that sounded eerily similar to his own, maybe older._

"_To tell you to stop hiding…"_

"FATHER!" Falco sprung up from his bed, causing him to fall off of it and onto the hardwood floor. He groaned as he tried to pick himself back up.

"Hide from what?"

There was no answer.

"HIDE FROM WHAT!?" He shouted to the sky. But once again, his plea fell on deaf ears.

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After their heartfelt embrace, Wolf had decided that it was truly time to leave. He couldn't let this control him anymore. He still had so many feelings for her, but he wanted to respect her decision.

" Well Serena, it's time…" He awkwardly uttered while wiping away his tears. She didn't want to respond back, but it felt weird for her to not.

"Do you know where you're going?" She asked.

"Hopefully, if all goes to plan…" The lupine was about to head back inside, but he was reminded of something. He fiddled with his wedding ring until it came loose and put it in her paw. "Serena, I want you to keep this. It would mean so much to me if you did." Now, Serena really didn't want to respond. She knew that if she even attempted, it would bring far too many tears for her to shed, and she couldn't deal with that right now.

With that, he dragged himself into the bedroom to pack some clothing and get himself dressed since he was still only in his boxers. He looked around his old room, trying his best to hold off on leaving for as long as he could, but it knew it would only hurt him more.

"Wolf." Serena stifled at the statement, but he already heard it and turned around to see what she needed. In her paw was the photo that had originally caught his eye when he returned home. The sight tore at him with each moment it was in sight. "Take this…"

Wolf had no intention of taking anything from his home save his clothing. But if she was able to keep the ring, he could at least take the picture. He thought of it as a way to remind himself of the good times, much like he was reminding her with the apartment.

"You gonna be alright?" He mouthed.

"I'll be fine." She responded reassuringly, while giving him a final kiss goodbye. "I won't forget you." Her red hair brushed across his nose, giving off a scent of lilies.

"I won't either…" The lupine went over toward the door, but was once again stopped.

"Do you need your car keys?" He let out a sigh of relief, knowing he forgot something.

"Yeah." He listened as the clanking sound of his keys drew nearer until they were finally in his grasp. Wolf turned around and made one final gaze at his wife, soaking it all in to etch her image into his brain. He opened up the door, and walked into the hall, shutting the door slowly as he did so.

_Well Wolf, it's time to do what needs to be done._

He walked toward the elevator and prepared for the worst…

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Erika stirred from her sleep by the sound of a vehicle nearing the beach house she slept in . She swiftly moved toward the windows and saw a black convertible with the hood down. A red racing stripe was also visible on the sides of the car. While she couldn't exactly see who was behind the wheel, the avian had an idea who it was. Her guess was confirmed once she saw a grey wolf exiting the vehicle and eying the property for a minute before approaching the door.

Wolf was surprised to see Erika standing at the doorstep when he arrived. So when she opened the door and greeted him, he decided to figure out some things.

"You must be Wolf." She remarked. "I'm E-"

"Erika, I know, we met at the party." He said.

She decided to drop the innocent spiel and began to speak with growing concern. "I assume you're here for Falco?"

"Is he up?"

"Dunno. In fact, I literally got up moments ago." She looked up toward the loft where his room was. "I could look if you want."

He ignored her offer and began to walk through the home toward the back. He couldn't help but feel that he was in fact awake. He went past the living room that was still filled with all the seascape memorabilia one could imagine, followed by a short hallway that connected to the roomy kitchen. On the opposite end was a door outside to the second floor deck that overlooked the beach. When he looked outside, he saw Falco looking out at the waves while smoking a cigarette. He heard Erika behind him, but she stopped near the door frame that separated the hall from the kitchen.

"Be careful, I can't tell ya if he's gonna snap or not."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When the door opened, Falco quickly threw his joint out toward the sand and turned to see who he thought was Erika. But when he found Wolf on the opposing end, he felt as though he had been put in quite a predicament.

"I thought I heard someone pulling in…" He said in a condescending way.

"No need to get cocky Falco. I didn't come here for that shit. I need some assistance." It was then Falco could see Wolf's droopy posture and somber face. "Me and Serena broke it off today, and I gave her the apartment. I need somewhere to stay. I know that you're probably still mad and shit but-"

"Erika talked some sense into me last night." Wolf stopped speaking mid sentence, shocked at what he was hearing. "The fight was my fault…I'm sorry…" The suddenness of Falco's apology caught the lupine off guard.

"Umm, okay…this is the Falco Lombardi I've known for years right?" He cocked his head still dumbfounded by the birds sudden change of heart. "And since when have you smoked?"

"Have I ever told you about my parents?" Once again, Wolf was confused at everything the falcon was saying to him.

"No…" The avian let out a sigh and placed his hand out.

"I know you got cigs…" The lupine reluctantly gave him one and allowed him to smoke it. "Thanks, well I think this would be a good time to find a seat, this could take a while…"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Twenty Years Ago…_

_Zoness_

_A much younger Falco was sitting on the beach, waiting patiently for his mother and father to arrive back from their anniversary dinner. While they enjoyed a five star meal, Falco was left with some friends on the beach. However as the sun began to set, the pre-adolescent avian was worried about his parents. They said they would arrive back to pick him up at seven sharp, and half an hour later, they still hadn't arrived. _

"_What the heck?" _

_He decided that he should go search for them on his own. Besides, the only way to get to the beach was the single road that would make a complete one-eighty back around so they would run into him anyway. _

_The further he went, the more hopeless he felt. Not a single speck of light was showing in the distance and the day was growing shorter by the minute. Falco had grown weary and sat himself down by the road._

_Up in the distance, a light finally showed. It wasn't until it got closer did he realized that it was actually his parents car. He waved at it frantically to try and get their attention, however when it approached, he noticed it's erratic swerving and that there was only one person behind the wheel. He turned sharply in the direction of the bird and took aim. Luckily the avian was agile enough to get out of the way, and jump into the thick grass on the side of the road. Before he lost sight of the car, he could see it had bounced off of a few large rocks on the edge of the road, hopefully whoever it was behind the wheel thought that he had hit him and moved on._

_Fear stuck Falco like a spear hitting its target. Afterward, he could hear that the car was slowing down and finally come to a stop a few hundred feet ahead of him. This was when he popped out of the grass and checked to see what was going on. In the distance he saw a large chameleon jump out of the car and pop open the trunk, where muffled screams seemed to be emanating. _

"_SHUT THE FUCK UP!" He screamed while laughing maniacally. The creature grabbed something from out of the trunk, which he found out moments later was his own parents, still wearing their formal attire, and bound by duct tape on their mouths, wrists, and legs. Falco put his hand over his mouth so he wouldn't attract any attention from this mystery man._

"_Before I go any further." The chameleon stuttered. "I want to thank you for the ride. It'll fetch me a pretty penny." He immediately followed his remark by forcefully moving the two of them over toward the thick grass on the side of the road. Falco carefully navigated his way toward them. Eventually, he found himself outside of the grass and in a large field that overlooked the seascape. His parents were now situated at the edge of the cliff that if they fell off of, would easily lead to a watery grave._

"_First thing's first." The psychotic lizard uttered, fumbling something out of his pocket. Falco couldn't see what it was, but it seemed to be something big. _

_Moment's later, a loud bang shattered the silence. A red laser briefly appeared before making contact with Falco's father. It struck his head at point blank range, killing him instantly. The avian fell to the ground, twitching like mad before falling over the edge of the cliff. Falco's heart split in two as the image was comprehended. He dare not speak a word however, he felt so vulnerable at that very moment. Unable to save his own family. If he did try, he would more than likely fail. He could hear a loud crunch followed by a small splash as his fathers lifeless body smashed into the boulders below, and then the sea where he would be lost forever._

_The mother was still alive however, but on the inside she wished she were not. Her ear piercing screams were only stopped by the tape on her face. The creature kicked her down to the ground and began to pummel her with his foot._

"_SHUT UP YOU CUNT!" In the middle of the blows, the tape came undone and her screams were becoming noticeable._

"_STOP IT PLEASE!"_

"_I HAVE A CHILD!"_

"_NO MORE!"_

_The gurgled words would forever be etched into Falco's mind. As the pleas for mercy finally died down and were replaced by the sound of constant bludgeoning, the avian began to cry. His parents lives had been taken from him. But the sound never stopped._

_CRUNCH!_

_CRUNCH!_

_CRUNCH!_

_Over and over…_

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

"Falco…w-why didn't you tell us?" Wolf had begun to smoke a cigarette now, feeling extremely down from the story.

"Because I hid my feelings away." His remorse was bleeding out of his voice. "That's why I've always had that tough guy persona. I hide my depression deep down to make myself feel better."

"Damn…"

"That's not even the tip of the iceberg."

"It's not!?"

"They caught the man who killed them about a week later. Apparently it was a random act without much of a motive. The fucker only got spared due to winning the insanity plea. He stayed in the place until his death about five years later." Wolf stopped him from saying any more.

" What was his name?" He said with fear in his eye. Falco knew he wouldn't like what he was about to hear.

"Cham Powalski…" Wolf buried his face in his paws, realizing that it was his former teammate's father that had killed Falco's parents. It all made sense now why they were rivals. Leon wished to finish off what his father had started. It wasn't exactly avenging his death, but it was probably in his fathers best wishes.

"I'm…sorry."

"It's not your fault, you didn't know. I could understand why Leon never told you. I just hope he rots in that cell of his like his father." Falco retorted coldly.

"I hope so too."

There was a long period of silence, only broken by them exhaling the smoke from their cigs. Falco looked toward the kitchen window and saw Erika staring at them nervously. She had no idea what they were talking about but it was obvious to her it was troubling. She didn't want to intrude though, so she just stood there, sipping a glass of water.

Finally, the silence was broken.

"So Falco, are we cool?" He showed a somewhat awkward smile, trying his best not to look hostile, especially in his fragile state.

"Yeah, and you can stay in the other couch bed where Erika sleeps." This brought up another thought in Wolf's head.

"So, are you two dating?"

"Nah, she doesn't have anywhere to stay so I'm letting her crash here." Wolf snickered at his response.

"Hey, do you want the couch or not!?" He playfully retorted. "Come on, lets go inside. We still have a lot of shit to talk about…"

**_Authors Notes:_**

**_WE'RE HALFWAY HOME! Fifteen chapters down, fifteen to go. I hope that you have enjoyed this first part of the story. If you have, please do review it and tell me what you think._**

**_Until next time..._**


	16. Found Out

_**Chapter Fifteen: Found Out**_

_**WARNING: SHORT CHAPTER INCOMING!**_

_**Also, I'm sorry if this chapter comes out bad because I've had a four day case of writers block. Don't worry though, the next few chapters after this should turn out just fine :D**_

---------------------------------------------

Wait  
I'm coming undone  
Irate  
I'm coming undone  
Too late  
I'm coming undone  
One looks so strong  
So delicate  
Wait  
I'm starting to suffocate  
And soon I anticipate  
I'm coming undone  
One looks so strong  
So delicate

"Coming Undone" - Korn

------------------------------------------------

_Three Months Later..._

_Bothsiloth_

"Sir, we have some fairly plausible information on the whereabouts of Otto…" A ratty looking cat spoke. In the corner of the room was a large black figure hidden by his own shadow.

"You have my attention…" The figure grumbled in a deep voice.

"Well uh," The feline nervously mouthed. "During out scout of the desert, we found an abandoned building…"

"…"

"What I mean is, it was what we thought was an abandoned building. We noticed that there were others inside. After a quick check, we discovered scrap metal and what appeared to be Otto." There was a long silence that enveloped the room.

"Is that all?"

"No sir, we also found another person of interest along with them…Does the name Lars Ha-"

"Harburg…" The voice interrupted. His breathing was becoming heavier.

"Umm, yes sir…" The figure finally came out of the darkness, revealing Hammerhead Orglich- a jet black swine with piercing red eyes . He wore a black suit that practically blended into his rather big boned build. He smiled devilishly at the informant and spoke up.

"Take them out…"

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_Two Days Later…_

Otto observed Lars and Co'ort made some last minute checks on the new craft that had been completed about three days ago. The all black exterior made it stand out on land but once in space, it would be practically invisible. Because of this, the hound had appropriately named it _The Shadow._ Otto motioned to Lars to come his way.

"Is everything ready?" He questioned.

"Looks like it. Fuels loaded, engines working, and the air supply is at full capacity. I'd say we'll be fine for tomorrow."

The brown furred canine undid the hatch inside and went toward the bridge. It was a bit tight for the crew once everyone was on it, but it was a welcoming aspect for Otto since he had been so used to working in an extremely claustrophobic workspace a few months prior. As he turned back to head out, he became face to face with Andre. His arm was bloody and singed.

"Andre, what happen-"

"We've been compromised." The tan vulpine said as if it were one word. He pushed Otto out of the way and grabbed a seat on the bridge. The canine had no time to react to his statement, within moments, the room became loud and cluttered with people. Their voices became indistinguishable, all being drowned out by the sound of gunfire ricocheting off of the heavily armored ship. Otto was brought out of his trance by Andre, who smacked him on the cheek.

"What the fuck are you standing around for?!" He got no response from him. "Get the ship started, we're busting out early!" The fox ran down the hall toward the engine room to make sure that the engines fired properly. Without any hesitation, Otto took the controls and prepared to take off. What he worried about the most was the fact that he'd have to break through the roof without compromising the integrity of the ship. It wasn't exactly the strongest stuff but he hoped that it would hold in long enough.

"Okay, I'm about to start this up guys, brace yourselves!" With the press of a few buttons, a loud sonic boom entered Otto's ears and the whole ship began to vibrate as it began to tilt upward to the sky.

"Steady guys!" The canine began sweating, making him lose his grip on the controls. But after regaining his composure, he set off the ignition and _The Shadow_ began to take off toward the sky.

_One step closer to revenge…_

Soon enough, the crew was beyond Bothsiloth's atmosphere and in space. They had been freed from the clutches of an evil empire. But now that they had escaped Bothsiloth, a single question loomed over the team.

"Where do we go from here?" Lars questioned as he got up from his seat to check on Andre.

"As far away as we can…Like out of this system…" Otto looked at the radar and checked for any other planetary systems in the area. Only one other was within reaching distance: Lylat.

_Why does that sound so familiar?_

After eyeing the radar, he checked to see the local information of the planets that orbited the central star; Solar. A wide array of planets showed up, from an entirely frozen wasteland, to a toxic dump, there was a little bit of everything in the Lylat System. One planet stuck out however, it seemed to be fairly normal with a well rounded government and no corruption whatsoever. It seemed to be the best bet for the team.

"Guys, we're heading to Corneria…"


	17. Is There?

_**Chapter Sixteen: Is There?**_

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You can´t give up.  
When you're lookin' for that diamond in the rough.  
Because uou never know but when it shows up.  
Make sure you´re holdin` on.  
'Cause it could be the one, the one you´re waiting on.

'Cause nobody wants to be the last one there.  
And everyone wants to feel like someone cares.  
Someone to love with my life in their hands.  
There has gotta be somebody for me  
Oh!

Nickelback - "Gotta Be Somebody"

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_Corneria City_

The past few weeks had been quiet for the trio that was Wolf, Falco, and Erika. They had been keeping in touch with the Star Fox team, telling them they would take a month off to evaluate their actions and be ready to come back afterward. While they appeared to have made up in a single day, both Falco and Wolf knew that it would take more than just a simple apology and if they were to return to the skies, they had to know that this wouldn't happen again.

Out of the three of them, Falco seemed to have the largest change in attitude. The dream he had seemed to really affect him. While his old self would make appearances every now and then, he was beginning to come out of the proverbial shell and show the real Falco Lombardi. This was very clear when Erika was around him. Along with Wolf, the avian felt like she was someone he could talk to about his personal life.

With the sudden split with Serena, Wolf had been struggling to remain emotionally stable. Some days he would be just fine, but on many days he was a mess and couldn't function properly. He began to smoke a lot more than usual, downing a pack on a good day. The fact that Falco wasn't criticizing him for his actions was a plus for him though.

Erika was the odd one out for the group. She hardly knew either of her "roommates" aside from what Falco said during their personal conversations, and she wasn't exactly affiliated with the Star Fox team. As the weeks progressed, she did show some interest in asking if she could join but it wasn't an important matter on her mind.

The group had let everything hum along on its own, it would be time to return to their lives soon. However, there would be more to come before anything else happened…

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Solar, the bright sun that had a deep meaning for Wolf since he met Serena. Now, it was a reminder of his mistake. But it still felt important for him, so on this cool morning he decided to watch it rise on the deck, knowing Serena would be doing the same. A cigarette hung off his muzzle, glowing faintly in the pseudo-darkness.

"You do this every morning?" Falco said behind him, causing the lupine to jump with surprise and the jag to fall out of his mouth.

"Jesus Christ don't scare me like that!" He growled. "What are you doing up at this time anyway? Last time I saw you wake up before seven was before Zoness."

"I wanted to talk to you in private before Erika got up for her morning jog."

"Jog?"

"_What are you doing jogging in the middle of the city anyway? If I'm correct there's a perfectly good park for your feet to jog on." _

"Yeah, she does it every day. She likes to keep herself in top shape." Although the avian didn't know it, he was unintentionally making Wolf feel worse. "I'm not sure if I should talk to you about this, but it's kind of important…about Serena." Wolf's tail stood up in curiosity. He found the idea of Falco asking about Serena to be odd and unlike him.

"I'm listening…" He mumbled as Falco took a seat on the wooden railing.

"Okay, I'm curious about when and how you knew that Serena was for you?"

Wolf stood silent, thinking about the question as if it were a life or death situation. Looking back at his first encounter with her was both exciting and depressing. He had been extremely depressed at the time of them running into each other one cool March morning, and the talk they had was a large ego booster for him. But was that the moment he realized she was for him?

"Probably the morning following our first date. We talked about our past for some time and then…we just laid there. I was just fine laying next to her and doing nothing. It was so calm and relaxing after spilling our secrets out for all to see." He stared at Falco with a smile. "That, was when I realized…now it's my turn to ask you something."

"Shoot."

"Why the curiosity?" The bird had expected this to come up, so he came out and spilled the beans."I think I got some sort of feelings for Erika." Wolf snickered at the comment. "What's so funny?"

"You've never had any feelings for anyone Falco, are you sure about this?"

"Well, whenever I'm around her, I feel like I've had the breath taken out of me. I mean, I can keep my cool around her, but it's inside that I feel awesome."

"Have you told her that?"

"No…" Wolf took a moment to light another cigarette.

"I suggest you take it slow. However, if you feel like this is somebody for you, don't let her slip away." He took a quick drag. "You'll regret it for the rest of your life."

Falco understood the principles that Wolf was putting out. Letting go of one you might care for could be a fatal mistake. But for now, he thought taking it slow would be best for him. If things progressed, then he would as well. That's how life goes.

"Thanks Wolf, I'll have to speak with her soon. I just hope I don't slip up."

"Man, you've gone soft on us Falco!" They both laughed wholeheartedly.

"Hey, I'm still the same hardass I've always been. Difference now is that I am only when it's appropriate."

"Whatever you say Falco, whatever you say…" The lupine flicked the cig into the sand, watching it leave a small smoke trail as it hit the ground.

The two went inside, and said nothing more about their talk, there was no need to. All that had been said was said, and all that needed to be done was done. By the time they had gone back inside, Erika had already left the house. Falco's talk with her would have to wait for another time, and he wanted to make sure that it was the right one too…


	18. First Impressions

_**Chapter Seventeen: First Impressions**_

_**Authors Notes:**_

_**Hey guys, my writers block has passed and I'm back into the swing of things. So expect quality chapters to come :D**_

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Are you gonna live your life wondering,  
Standing in the back,  
Looking around?

Are you gonna waste your time thinking,  
How you've grown up,  
Or how you missed out?

Things are never gonna be the way you want.  
Where's it gonna get you acting serious?  
Things are never gonna be quite what you want,  
Or even at twenty five,  
You gotta start sometime.

I'm on my feet I'm on the floor I'm good to go.  
Now all I need is just to hear a song I know.  
I wanna always feel like part of this,  
Was,  
Mine.  
I wanna fall in love tonight.

Jimmy Eat World - "A Praise Chorus"

--------------------------------------------

_One Week Later…_

"This is the Cornerian Aircraft Assembly, please identify yourself…"

It was the first sight of Corneria for them. The blue-green planet was massive compared to the other planets that _The Shadow_ had passed along the way. The group was expecting a transmission from some form of air traffic controller as they were an unknown craft. Otto cued the mic and began to think up some professional sounding name for his ship.

"Yes, sorry for the delay." He apologetically spoke. " This is the PT-95A Shadow Craft requesting to land at the nearest port…" Everyone patiently waited for a response, hoping they would buy it.

"Where are you hailing from?"

_Shit…_

They couldn't tell them they were coming from Bothsiloth because they would be considered hostile targets. However, there was one place that they could say…

"We departed from Besdolore about a month ago."

"I see, we don't get any information on ships departing from other systems outside of Lylat, but we have heard of that planet before and we'll take your word for it. Do you need any assistance on docking?" Everyone let out a sigh of relief.

"Yes we would, thank you."

"Just hang tight for a while, we're gonna get an escort to lead the way…"

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A short ride later, _The Shadow_ had arrived at the Cornerian Docking Station located on the outskirts of Corneria City by the shoreline. After a brief security check, they were free to go. They were led outside by members of the Cornerian Army to taxi's awaiting them. Otto found the treatment they were getting to be quite classy and out of the ordinary. Problem was, they had no idea where they would be going from there. There had to be tons of places to live temporarily among the skyscrapers and homes. They had to find somewhere to stay, and fast.

"Where you headin'?" The cabbie asked as everyone entered the vehicle.

"Umm, could you bring us down the shoreline?" Otto requested. The man behind the wheel didn't answer, but simply pressed the accelerator and headed down toward the edge of the city. The sun was beginning to set in the West, making the sky turn a radiant orange glow, reflecting brightly off of the yellow sheet metal on the cab. The canine carefully observed the buildings next to the street, hoping to find any sign of availability. He would take anything that was open, no matter what the conditions.

"I assume you guys ain't from here?" The cabbie said.

"You guessed right." Lars retorted with a snort. "We're coming from Bo-" Co'ort jabbed him in the rib, making him double over in pain.

"We're coming from Besdolore." The rat said to correct the pig.

"Ass…" Lars mumbled under his breath.

"Interesting. I heard about some assassination-"

"Stop the car!" Otto demanded, making the driver swerve momentarily by the shocking response.

"Okay, if you insist." He slammed on the brakes, causing everyone to lurch forward. Otto threw some cash at the cabbie and exited the car, leaving them on a street that contained fairly nice businesses on one side, and beach homes on the other. The driver gave a semi-friendly wave before peeling out and sailing off into the distance. It wouldn't be until later that he realized that the cabbie probably wouldn't have accepted the cash he gave him, but it was his loss for not looking closer.

"What the hell was that for?" A frustrated Andre growled. "Now what do we do?"

"Look across the street…" Otto replied while pointing toward a building on the other side of the road.

It was a brick structure that had three stories, a large sign that went across it read "Cornerian Market/General Housing". On the left side of the building was two doors that seemed to lead to different places. It would be assumed that one of those led upstairs. The group stood silent, waiting for someone to make a move. It didn't take long, as the canine ran across the street when it cleared up, opened the door to the right and walked up the stairs that it led to.

The smell inside was rather musty but it seemed to be only downstairs, as it cleared up when he reached the top of the flight. Upstairs was what appeared to be a lobby of sorts with a desk, chairs, and the normal furniture that would be found in these kinds of venues. Behind the wooden desk was a green bird who seemed to be slumbering off on the job, which seemed impossible with the noisy patrons on the floor below them. Otto approached him, hoping that he would get a response from the avian.

"Can I help you?" The bird said.

"Uh, yeah my friends and I need a place to stay for a short period of time. Is there anything available at an affordable price?" The bird grabbed a folder and opened it up, studying it for a minute before speaking again.

"We have a three bedroom apartment with two single bed frames and mattresses in each, would that do?"

"How much?" The avian looked down at the papers again.

"I'm a fair man, I'll let you guys stay for fifty a week."

"FIFTY!?" Otto was shocked at the extremely low price tag for a three bedroom apartment. The guy must have been joking.

"Unless you want the original price tag of two hundred…"

"But why?"

"As long as you can keep the place as clean and neat as possible for your short stay, it'll be that way. Treat this as a hotel and keep everything somewhat sanitary, and I'll keep that price tag. The last people who stayed in it trashed the fucking place to bits, so take this as an insurance policy so to speak."

It was an offer that had some fairly manageable conditions. If he could keep everyone else in check, this could be an easy lifestyle for them.

"I'll take it, but I can't quite pay for that yet since we need to exchange our cash for Cornerian Credits."

"That's fine with me, you just need to sign some papers and the place will be yours. Payment will come next week."

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Soon enough, everyone had made their way to their apartment. The interior was quite roomy, most of it based as one long hallway with a kitchen on the left side which connected to the living room. On the other side of the hall was doors that led to everyone's bedrooms and bathrooms that were practically interconnected as well. While the place felt naked with the white walls and barren carpets, everyone hoped that it wouldn't last too long.

Since there was literally nothing to do an the sun was already down, the group felt obligated to get to sleep. To choose who would be left with the coveted single room to themselves, Lars cut up some straws and told everyone to draw one. To his surprise, Lars ended up with the only straw without a pairing. The rest settled into their rooms with their respective straw mate. For Otto, it turned out to be Co'ort. They stayed in the room closest to the front door, claiming it had the most room available even though the dimensions were practically the same. It was merely a show of pride.

"So how long do you think we're gonna be here for?" Queried the rat.

"Dunno, whenever I feel like we can take Michael down." Otto replied, staring into the blankness of the ceiling. "I wouldn't worry about that yet. We need more people to help out before anything else occurs…" Co'ort didn't respond back as he had already fallen asleep. "Typical…"

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The following morning, Otto thought it would be a good idea to see what exactly was sold in the store downstairs. He got up around nine and headed downstairs at the first opportunity he got. He found the place to already be open, it was apparently a simple grocery store that was open twenty four seven. Now the canine was realizing why it was so cheap to live in such a spacious room.

After eying some of the products, he took some microwavable foods and began to head toward the beverage isle. Unfortunately for Otto, as he left the isle he was in, another patron was walking into the same one. They both ran into each other, sending everything he was flying into the air. Both of them were able to recover some of the stuff, but most of it ended up sprawled over the floor. Otto looked up to see a blue avian with red borders around his eyes and a large tip of hair. `

"Oh crap, sorry bout' that." The bird stood there for a moment, as if he was waiting for something.

Turns out that something was acknowledgment of who he was. Falco's still slightly ego-crazed self couldn't help but wonder why he hadn't noticed that he was a pilot for the Star Fox team. He waited another minute to see if there would be any recognition, there was none.

"Do you happen to know who I am?" Otto wasn't sure if it was meant to sound hostile or not because the bird had made it sound neutral. He nodded in disagreement, bringing an unfortunately upset face to the avian.

"Have you ever heard of Star Fox before?" Otto's head went up, he knew of the team. Many a story had been told about their heroic efforts against the evil Andross. While there were other stories that he had recalled about other threats that had stopped, Andross was by far the one everyone seemed to know of. He also remembered being told about the members; Fox McCloud, Slippy Toad, Peppy Hare, and…

"You're Falco aren't you?" He said, making the birds face light up with ecstasy.

"Damn right pal." Falco laughed back . "You got a name?"

"How the hell am I supposed to believe that you're Falco Lombardi? Shouldn't you be up in space fighting baddies somewhere?"

"Well, that's a long story that I'd rather not get into at the moment. Let's just say that I'm taking a vacation and leave it at that." He took out a small pin from his pocket, on it was the Star Fox insignia and his name right below it. There was no more doubt in Otto's mind that he was the real deal.

"Cool, I'm Otto by the way." The two shook hands.

"Nice name, I suppose you're not from around here?" He asked as he picked up some of the groceries that were dropped.

"You catch on quickly. I just moved in upstairs last night with some friends."

"Interesting, where'd you come from?"

Otto had realized that this could be an opportunity to actually get an group of expert mercenaries on his side to help bring down the man who had put him in this situation. However, the possibility of Falco turning him into the authorities could also be high if they knew of the events which the avian apparently didn't know of. He decided that it was a risk he would be willing to take.

"Do you really want to know?" Falco was confused by the statement, unsure why he would ask such a thing. Was it really that bad of a place?

"I guess…"

And so, without any further hesitation, Otto began to tell Falco Lombardi how he had been framed and exiled from his home planet along with the events that followed. He tried to tell them in the most detailed way possible to make sure that nothing was left out. If there was any chance of them to work with him, he would have to make it sound believable in his favor (which technically it was already) When he finished, Falco stood speechless. He knew that he had gotten a new ally.

"Look Otto, I can't make any promises, but I think I can help you out with your little problem…"

"I'm listening…"

"Well first, I need to round up the team again, we've been kind of split apart for some time now. If Fox is cool with helping out, then you got yourself some backup."

"Sounds like a plan…"

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Falco wasted no time to hurry home after the run in with the brown canine and sent a message to the_ Great Fox III_, telling them that everyone was ready to return to the team and there would be more news he would share when they arrived back. When asked about his sudden rush of energy, the bird explained everything to Wolf and Erika, bringing a wave of excitement to them both. Erika seized the opportunity to request that she join up with them when they disembarked. After some slight hesitation, and a push from Wolf, Falco agreed to allow her.

"See Falco, now that wasn't so hard was it?" Wolf chuckled while patting him on the back.

"It's a start…


	19. Rain Delay

_**Chapter Eighteen: Rain Delay**_

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"Sometimes I can be my own worst enemy... I am my own worst enemy... other times when I'm alone at night I definitely find myself in the position to be very unhappy with myself...This is one of those times…"

Limp Bizkit - "Underneath The Gun"

----------------------------------------------------------

_Three Days Later…_

Erika had been looking for Falco for about ten minutes to no avail. She never saw him leave the place and she recalled seeing him around dinner but after that, it felt like the blue falcon had just disappeared.

"Hey Wolf!" She screamed off the loft overlooking the foyer. The lupine came out from underneath it moments later, awaiting her response. "Have you seen Falco? I need to ask him something."

"Yeah, he told me he was going to stargaze on the roof for a little while. I don't think there's a ladder anywhere but if you climb the railing out back, you should be able to get up there easily."

"Thanks." With that, she head out back to the porch.

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"I stare into space, and hope we're not alone. Am I searchin' for something that's better than home? I've been workin' so hard…" Falco lightly sang as he laid on the shingled roof of his home, staring blankly at the stars that dotted the sky. "Stress is tremendous, and pressure is endless. No one on this plane-"

"Falco?" Erika's voice made him jump with surprise. Her silhouette was barely noticeable in the darkness. What was bright red in day, became a deep maroon color by the night.

"Whoa, don't scare me like that!" He grumbled.

"Sorry, what are you doing up here anyway?"

"Just looking at the stars. Sometimes I just need some time to myself…" Erika frowned at what he had said, feeling like she was intruding on Falco.

"If you want some time alone…"

"No, it's fine. You can stay."

She climbed higher up on the roof until she was level with the avian. After sitting down, she looked over at Falco who was now staring back at the void. He looked uneasy however, as if something was troubling him.

"I wanted to talk to you for a moment, if that's okay."

"Sure, what's up?".

"I've been noticing a change in behavior from you."

"Well yeah, I've been making myself a bit less of a prick I guess…"

"No, that's not what I mean." She sighed, knowing he was trying to play dumb. "I'm referring specifically to when you're around me. You're always nervous or jittery. See, there you go!" She pointed over to his arms, which were trembling. Falco quickly hid them and gave her a nervous smile. He couldn't hide the fact that he felt something for Erika anymore. That would be too cruel and she wouldn't buy it even if she was completely clueless.

"Alright Erika, I'll man up here." He took a deep breath. "I think I'm falling for you…"

_Eww, bad choice of words Falco… The bird thought._

"Think?"

"Well, I don't really know if I've experienced love before outside of my-" He stopped, almost forgetting about the horrible experience many years ago.

"Your what, Falco?" She put her hand over his shoulder, seeing that his breathing was becoming heavier. It was a bit disturbing for her to see the famous Falco Lombardi on the verge of crying. The inevitable never did come though, his tough side had taken over again. There would be no spilt tears this go around.

"My parents."

"I'm sorry, I'll just drop the subject if you want."

"Thanks…"

The two of them sat silent once again. They both wanted to say something, but they didn't want to be the first one to do it. It was an emotional Mexican standoff of epic proportions which could end with only one pulling the trigger.

"What is love to you Falco?" Erika questioned, looking deep into his light blue eyes for clarity. The avian took a moment to think about, which wasn't a surprise to Erika since it was a rather vague question that could have a wide variety of possible answers to it.

"Would you like to hear the long version or the short?"

"Whatever you think works…"

"In that case, I think that love is a feeling that grips you. It can be tough to pinpoint love and lust, but basing the fact that I usually consider myself more of a lust-fueled person, it might be easier for me to tell. To me, if I feel like someone has significantly moved me or affected me to the point where I cannot stop thinking about them, where I can tell them anything that has occurred in my life without the fear of them judging me, I would consider that love." Falco responded, feeling as though he got his point across very well.

"Wouldn't that be considered friendship?"

"Do you think about your friends constantly?"

"Point taken. Well then, let me analyze your statement." She began to take on an interrogation-like tone. "Do you want to sleep with me?"

Falco's eyes shot open at the response she made. "Excuse me? What's with the sudden change of mood here?"

"I thought being up front about this would make this easier. Besides, this will tell me if you're loving me or lusting me"

"Well yeah, doesn't everyone have some sort of sexual urges?"

"Of course, but that's not all. Have you felt other things for me?"

Falco was smiling now. During the time the two of them were together, he had been moved by her. She had told her all about the problems going on with the team, and with time he would definitely tell her about what happened to his family. He had no doubt in his mind that there was something between him and Erika.

"More than you can imagine." In the darkness of it all, he could see that Erika was smiling back and moving toward him.

"So, based on the parameters you set out, I think it's safe to say that-"

"I love you…"

"Exactly…" She drew herself even closer now, gently pressing her head up against his shoulder. It brought a warm euphoric feeling to the avian to know that he had come to this realization and was able to tell Erika this. He began to lightly brush her feathers back to straighten out the fauxhawk that was beginning to get a bit curly from the light breeze. The sensations tickled her, making her squirm as he did it.

"Well someone's sensitive." Falco joked. He kept on gliding his fingers through her hair, making her giggle loudly. She was able to break free of his grip and instead of try and get away from him, she tackled Falco to the ground, giving him a mischievous grin. She locked her beak onto his, and embraced him fully. In Falco's head, fireworks were being set off in all directions. The avian grunted as her full weight was now being put on him. He had some idea of where this was going, until…

"Get a room lovebirds! There's this thing called dignity, try to keep it guys!" Wolf howled followed by a side splitting laugh. Falco wasn't sure how long he had been listening, but he had obviously heard enough.

"Way to ruin the moment Wolfy!" He responded back, making Erika laugh some more. "So fuckin' nosy…"

"It's okay, he did have a good point."

"Yeah." Before getting back up, they quickly gave each other a quick peck and head back down onto the balcony where Wolf was waiting with the most evil smile on his face. When Erika had gone back inside, Falco gave the lupine a swift jab to the shoulder, making it go numb.

"Ow! You dick!"

"Way to ruin the moment." He replied jokingly.

"Hey, you two were gonna be doin' it on an abrasive and gritty surface had I not stopped you two. Would the marks down your back be worth it in the end?"

"Maybe…" They both laughed as they walked inside the house.

"Either way Falco, way to get to first. Maybe next time, I'll let you hit it out of the park."

"Remind me to knock your teeth out the next time you do that." Wolf continued to laugh while placing an arm around Falco's shoulder.

"Will do Falco…will do."


	20. Reunion

_**Chapter Nineteen: Reunion**_

**Writers Note:**

_**Sorry for totally slacking lately. I've had a lot of stuff on my mind and still do. I'll try to update more often though. Hope you guys like how this turned out.**_

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If we can,  
We will leave a letter and this song  
For you,  
And we'll write,  
Once a day,  
And float it through the sea,  
To you.  
We'll regret,  
All those things we thought of but didn't ever do.

Box Car Racer - "Watch The World"

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**Eight Days Later…**

The days slowly passed for Wolf, Falco, and Erika. They had been patiently waiting for the team to arrive back in town to pick them up and what was to the rest of the team, an unknown group of people. But the day did come, and the Star Fox team had arrived back home. However to their displeasure, there was no welcome wagon for them. Falco had told Fox to meet up at his place for some vital information. Naturally, they wouldn't turn it down and headed off to the avian's home.

Upon arrival, Fox was greeted by a shocking face, Wolf had already seen them approaching the door and took the time to actually come outside to greet them.

"Wow, I knew that you two had apologized to each other but, you're rooming with Falco now?" The vulpine joked at Wolf.

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Isn't that a little gay?"

"Hah, that couldn't be further from the truth." He turned around looking over toward Falco's room upstairs. "Hey Erika!" Out of his doorway came the red feathered bird looking a bit confused. Once she saw who was down in the foyer however, the avian put on a radiant smile and walked out of view momentarily before reappearing out from the kitchen.

"Erika: The Star Fox team, and vice versa…"

"I remember you from the party." It was at that moment he realized who she was.

"Oh…party…right…" Fox mumbled while nervously scratching the back of his head. He let the awkwardness pass and continued on with the conversation. "So where's Falco?"

"He's showering upstairs, he'll be down soon." She responded back, bringing frustration to the vulpine. He really wanted to know what Falco had to say since it would obviously be something important enough to force them over to his own home. For the time being, he thought it would be a good time to learn more about what he assumed to be Falco's girlfriend. The vulpine took a seat on the couch that Wolf normally slept on and rested his feet on the glass coffee table in front of him.

"So I heard that you were have experience as a merc, correct?"

"You've heard right. Kind of been a bit of a loner for some time though. Not really tied to any one group of people." The group wasn't surprised at this. She seemed like a person who could hold her own without much of a problem.

Fox himself had known many a soloist in his lengthy career that had spanned three separate decades. Thinking about it made him feel a bit on the old side, even if he was only thirty one. He wasn't quite the older man, but he hadn't escaped his younger days. In a short amount of time, he was able to remember those years in immense detail. From the moment he got the news of his fathers passing to him at the present time, it all came back to him. The tenderness of it all brought on a great elation inside of him, enveloping his entire body as he put on a wide smile. He was oblivious to everyone else but they didn't seem to be paying much attention to him as they were socializing with Erika. He could see lips moving but no words coming out of them.

"Foxie!" A familiar voice boomed from upstairs. The vulpine drew himself out of his trance and saw Falco looking over the loft to see what all the commotion was. The blue avian had already gotten himself dressed in his normal flight attire which consisted of his black combat boots that went up to his knee's, a pair of thick red pants, a brown g-suit, and lastly the tan vest that he had grown to love for so many years. Even from a distance, Fox could tell the avian had just gotten out of the shower and failed to dry himself off properly since his fauxhawk was all poofed up.

"Great to see you again Falco."

"Likewise. I'll be right down, give me a second." He disappeared back into his room for a moment before coming back down to them. "I see you've met Erika."

"Yeah, she's pretty cool." Slippy noted, making her blush under her already red feathers. "So what was this news you were gonna tell us about, huh?"

"Right. We're gonna take a quick walk down the street to get there, follow me."

"What's down the street?" Peppy asked.

"Look, I can't tell you until we get there okay?"

Everyone reluctantly dropped the subject and walked out the door.

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The moment he heard the door knock, Otto knew who it was. Without much thought, the canine got up from the couch he had recently bought and turned the doorknob to find Falco and a slew of other people that he quickly identified as the Star Fox Team looking back at him.

"Guys, this is Otto von Hiedrich. We met last week downstairs. I believe he has something he would like to tell you…"

He led the everyone into the still fairly empty living room and allowed everyone to situate themselves on the couch and other seats provided. Afterward, Otto began to recount the events that had occurred. Although he had done this many times before, it never seemed to get old. It had the same effect on him as it did the first time he explained it. He knew that with the amount of people he was telling, there would be suspicion, but he hoped that they would be able to understand the situation he was in. When it was all said and done, the team was silent. They were all still trying to digest everything that had been said. Nothing that the brown furred canine said appeared to be fraudulent. It was genuine and believable.

Unbeknownst to everyone else, Slippy had heard of Otto and his exile from Besdolore. The news station he always watched did a big thing on him for a few days before and after the exile but nothing more was said after it. He believed everything that Otto had said. To him, whatever the reporters had said was circumstantial. He always seemed to have that skeptical side to him, but it never really showed on the outside. It was more or less one of those things that needed to remain hidden from view as not to cause controversy between other members. It was like the army in a way; don't ask, don't tell.

"How long have you been here for?" Fox questioned.

"About a week and a half…"

"Hmm, do you know anything about piloting personal star fighters?"

"I've worked more on the ground than in the air, but if it's anything like the ship we got here with, I think I'd be able to adapt."

"Good, we'll have to set you guys up with a few."

"Where's everyone else Otto?" Falco interrupted.

"Out, they should be getting back momentarily. Speaking of which, I know that at least two of my men have plenty of piloting experience, and another knows a lot about the mechanics of the fighters."

"Now we're talking!" The vulpine exclaimed. "Is there anyone else with you?"

"Yeah, we have a former member of the Yaidvinian army. He's a lot like me, being more accustomed to ground missions, but he did pilot us most of the way here." Fox nodded in approval while walking over toward Falco.

"Are you sure that this guy's legit?" He whispered.

"I trust him and I think you should too Foxie. Besides, we might get something out of this." The avian replied while rubbing three of his feathery fingers together. The prospect of a reward was too good to pass up at a time like this. Fox had reached the decision and was not going to turn his back on it.

"We're in…"

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**The Following Morning…**

**Cornerian Military Base: Fighter Holding Station**

"Ready for this?" Fox asked Otto as he typed a pass-code into a small pad located on one end of a large hangar.

"Bring it…"

The vulpine finished typing in the code before pressing a green button next to the keyboard. What followed was a series of loud clunks as the door opened up from the bottom. As it slowly rose, the silhouettes of five medium sized fighters appeared. The silver and blue Arwings were in pristine condition and had probably not been touched in a while. Otto looked at them in awe, finding their design to be extremely advanced compared to the ship he had.

"Damn."

"Exactly, these babies are the enemies worst nightmare. Their maneuverability is spot on, while at the same time holds some nice firepower."

"Once again, damn."

"With a few of these, you guys will be up and running in no time."

"You mean, we're not getting all of them?"

"You said that you couldn't fly and that Teveroth guy was a ground man. We're strapped for time and we couldn't teach you guys how to operate these things by tomorrow. We're gonna let the others pilot while you two give covering fire from _The Shadow_."

"Is this gonna be enough to fight off Michael?"

"That's something you should have asked yourself a while ago buddy." He responded with a chuckle. "Lucky for you, I brought some backup…" The vulpine forced Otto to turn around. Behind them was a grey furred bulldog wearing a pair of shades that seemed to stand out the most on him. He also wore a green shirt and a tan vest similar to Falco's over it. In his paw was a similar colored helmet that had a comm link set up within it. He outstretched his hand toward the other canine and shook it.

"William Grey, ace pilot for the Cornerian Army, call me Bill."

"Nice to meet ya Bill."

"He's gonna bring along some of his men to help us out." Fox had come a long way with Bill since their beef those years back. But in time, they had become the friends they were before he cheated with Krystal. Rumors were also going around that Bill would be promoted to commander of the Cornerian Defense Force, which Fox thought would be perfect for him. Ever since joining the Cornerian Flight Academy at the age of eighteen, the canine had longed to become the commander of the army. With General Pepper approaching retirement, he hoped that he would be the one to take his place.

"So are we going to bring these over to _The Shadow_ or what?"

"Right, let's get moving…"


	21. So Lost And Disillusioned

_**Chapter Twenty : So Lost And Disillusioned**_

_Authors Note: _

_SHORT CHAPTER INCOMING!_

**---------------------------------------------------------**

This place was never the same again  
After you came and went  
How can you say you meant anything different  
To anyone standing alone  
On the street with a cigarette  
On the first night we met

Look to the past  
And remember and smile.  
And maybe tonight  
I can breathe for awhile.  
I'm not in the scene  
I think I'm fallin' asleep  
But then all that it means is  
I'll always be dreaming of you.

Blink-182 "Feeling This"

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Before everyone knew it, the time to head out to Besdolore had arrived. Everyone's respective fighter was placed inside of the holds and their crews were for takeoff. Three immense carriers; _The Shadow, The Great Fox III, _and _Canis _were on the tarmac, evenly spaced out, and waiting for the "go-ahead" signal.

"_Great Fox III_, this is ground control. Ships are good to go. Let em' loose." A voice crackled over the speaker.

"Roger that." Fox replied back. "_Shadow _and _Canis, _did you copy that?"

"Ten-four _Great Fox._" Both Otto and Bill replied.

"Let's spread our wings guys!"

All three ships began to simultaneously hover off of the ground, making the ground shake violently below. The engines came to life and let out red flames of various degrees in the rear of the ships, pushing them forward until corrections were made to point them toward the sky. One by one, they accelerated into the heavens and eventually became lost in the horizon. Star Fox and Company had completed the first step of their long journey to the planet Besdolore, but something told them it would be a tedious one…

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**A Few Hours Later…**

In his private quarters, Fox sat at his desk and began to write inside of his captains log.

_August 21st__, 2053_

_2253_

_We took off today at approximately 0730 from the Cornerian Military Base located five miles North-Northwest of Corneria City. There were no problems during takeoff or when escaping the atmosphere. The Shadow and Canis are both trailing us slightly but we plan on lowering the engines thrust to allow them to catch back up._

_I am still a bit curious about who and what we will be fighting against and I'm sure that everyone else is too, but I'm optimistic that we will be able to deal with whatever comes out way. Nobody can hold up against the Star Fox team, let alone the team and two other ships filled with some of the finest pilots I've ever known. _

_The Great Fox III will have it's work cut out with the journey we are embarking on. Approximate time of arrival will be in ten days, giving us plenty of time to prepare for the assault. The best case scenario will be the enemy being taken by complete surprise and will be too discombobulated to regroup. This will make picking them off a lot easier. Only time will tell if my prediction becomes reality…_

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Three Days Later**

Erika sat in the lounge, watching television with Slippy. She wasn't in the best of moods when she found out there was nothing that would help her remain entirely fit in a physical sense. It would be one of those things she would have to live with though, all she needed was the necessities and those were more than plentiful.

"So Erika, you gotten yourself familiar with the ship?" The frog asked as he flipped through the channels.

" Yeah, it seems like this is a fairly easy place to find your way around."

"When we made the blueprints for this iteration, it was originally going to have a few extra sleeping quarters, but we scrapped it, not thinking we would have anyone else on board. You'll just have to remain bunked with someone for the time being." Slippy turned over to see that the avian was smiling, he had completely forgotten that she was kind of going out with Falco and could now see why she was so happy.

"I've had two for a while now. I find it to be a lot easier now with just one."

"Well, with time you'll find that we're pretty laid back and forgiving." Erika got up from her seat and went over to the other side of the room to retrieve some cola in the mini-bar. She swiftly grabbed a bottle and popped the top off before taking a few sips.

"Have you seen Falco?" She questioned.

"I'm afraid not. He's probably in his room."

"Alright, I'm gonna head up there. Talk to ya soon Slip'" She walked toward the door, only to be blocked by Wolf and Panther who had just entered. They nodded at each other to acknowledge their presence and went their separate ways.

"Where's she headed?" Wolf asked.

"Falco's room." The lupine let out a few snickers. "What?"

"This happened to me too…"

"And?"

"Falco'd kill me if I told you…"

"Aww come on!" He begged. "Spill it!" The lupine made sure neither Falco nor Erika were around them before speaking back up.

"Let's just say that I'd leave them alone for a while, if you know what I mean." He responded while winking at the green frog, causing an uproar of laughter.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A loud thud on the door jarred Falco out of his bed. When not active, this was his second home in the ship besides the lounge. Everyone needs their beauty sleep and this was one bird who liked taking that phrase to heart.

"Falco, it's me." Erika spoke through the door. It was muffled on his end but being the only female on the ship, it was pretty obvious who it was. The blue feathered avian was greeted with a small peck on the cheek.

"Everything alright?"

"Yeah, I was just wondering why you were up here when everyone else is in the lounge conversing?"

"Resting. I enjoy sleep." He chuckled.

"How could you just waste your time laying around doing nothing?""That's just how I roll babe…"

Falco walked over to the bathroom and quickly relieved himself. He failed to shut the door but frankly, he didn't care. Erika didn't seem to mind so why not? When he was finished, the toilet automatically flushed and the avian washed off his hands before walking back over to the bed where Erika now sat.

"Do you need something?" She gave him no immediate answer, but instead the red avian stared at him. Her seductive smile brought one to Falco as well. "Come on, you can't hide your thoughts from me! Spill em!" He jokingly demanded.

"Wolf's downstairs with the gang…" She replied while pointing toward the ground. "…Fox and Peppy are on the bridge…"

"Are you saying-"

"Yeah…" She placed her hand on Falco's, gently moving it up and down his palm. It wasn't long before they had locked beaks much like they had on his roof. This time however, there would be nothing to hold them back. During that moment, there was only one thing he could think of…

_Oh God, I'm in for it now…_


	22. The Question

_**Chapter Twenty One: The Question**_

_**Authors Note:**_

_**Hey guys, I'm terribly sorry it's taken me so long to publish something. Last week was extremely stressful and I got nothing done. I also went to see Saw VI and hung out with some friends over the weekend which stopped me from making any progress. Not to mention I have some stomach bug right now so yeah… School has really gotten in my way of writing lately so expect maybe three to five chapters a month in November which should bring me to the last bit of the story! Anyway, I worked extra hard on this chapter to make up for it so enjoy!**_

----------------------------------------------------------

It was my turn to decide  
I knew this was our time  
No one else will have me like you do  
No one else will have me, only you

You'll sit alone forever  
If you wait for the right time  
What are you hoping for?  
I'm here and now I'm ready  
Holding on tight  
Don't give away the end  
The one thing that stays mine

Jimmy Eat World - "23"

----------------------------------------------------

Sex: The act of procreation in practically every species of the animal kingdom. In many cases however, it is also the act of physical bonding that signifies one's affection for one another. For Falco and Erika, it was the latter. Their love for one another had brought them to this point, and they planned on relishing the moment.

And relish they did. The experience left both of them satisfied and feeling even closer than before. From the moment their lips contacted, to the second Falco came to fruition, it was all something they would never forget.

"That was just…Wow…" Falco sighed as he and Erika laid in his bed, still clutching each other tightly. They gave each other a quick kiss before coming back up for air. Erika eventually rolled off of him, allowing the avian to breathe easier, however he continued to pant at an alarming rate. He wasn't quite sure how long they had been going at it, but he assumed it was around twenty minutes to half an hour. It had practically tired him to the point of losing consciousness, but he longed to stay awake. There was so much more he wished to talk about with her, but he knew that he would never have the time to.

He stared into her deep blue eyes, being the only thing that was a different color than the rest of her body, and searched them for emotion. The avian could see that she was content with everything. He continued to stare into the round pupils as his breathing was finally beginning to ease up. Falco couldn't hold himself up anymore, so he dropped onto the pillow and allowed his face sink in.

"Are you okay?" Erika questioned as she raised his head back up.

"Yeah, I'm just tired."

"I would imagine…" Falco put his head back down, burying it deep in the soft pillow. He realized that the questions he had would have to wait a little longer. "Falco?"

"Hmm?"

"I need to ask you something that's really important…" With all his strength, Falco got back up and stretched his arms out before speaking.

"What's up?"

"Is this for real Falco?" Falco was dumbfounded by the statement. His mouth opened, but nothing came out. "Are you there?"

"What do you mean?"

" Is this just going to be sex and nothing else?" He realized now what she meant and propped himself against the wall.

"Well wasn't it you that started this?" He replied jokingly.

"Yes, but I wanted to finish what you started." They both laughed for a moment before she cleared her throat again. "But seriously, is it more than this?"

"Erika, I love you and you know that." He said, lightly brushing his hand through her hair. "It's more than something physical…"

Erika failed to respond back for the longest period of time. She just laid there, allowing Falco to continue gliding his hand through her now slightly dirtied up locks. What he said was exactly what she wanted to hear. However, she feared that it would be something she may regret to have asked. In the handful of previous relationships she had experienced, she had heard that phrase many times over. The red feathered falcon contemplated if Falco really meant this. Much like all the others, his words felt truthful and loving. He wouldn't just say that after looking as though he was about to pass out the way he did. For now, she would take it for what it was: the truth.

"Thank you…" She whispered as she pecked his cheek. He returned the favor and rolled back over to rest.

"It is for real…" Falco mumbled as he drifted out of consciousness.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Everyone but Wolf had cleared out of the lounge to get some rest. The lupine was left alone to smoke his cigarette and maybe watch some television, but it wasn't on his to-do list per se. It was times like these which he enjoyed. The peace of it all left him and his mind to themselves, free of any distractions.

The calm was cut short however, Peppy strolled into the lounge to see if anyone was still there. The hare was taken by surprise when only Wolf was present.

"Damn, I thought y'all would stay up later than this." He joked.

"Maybe in our twenties, but we've pretty much dropped that by now."

"Sometimes, I feel like I forget how old we are. It's amazing, I'm gonna be fifty-two soon. Just feels like the time goes by way too fast…"

"I think we all feel that way." The lupine took a deep drag from his cig and tossed it into the trash bin next to the couch and watched as it slowly fizzled out. "I swear it was just yesterday I joined the team. Personally, I think you were the most surprised when you got the news!"

Peppy chuckled and nodded in agreement. "I probably was Wolf. I mean, you worked for Andross all those years back and I just never saw you coming over to the good side."

"You'd be surprised how long I wanted to leave Star Wolf."

"But why did you form it then? You were only nineteen, I don't see why you would just want to join a diabolical scientist who wished to take over the Lylat System at such a young age."

Wolf took a deep breath, looking back on the events that led to him doing what he did. The answer was very clear to why he did it; Andross promised a hefty reward for helping him out in his pursuits. Obviously, that didn't go over well, so he decided to try and continue as a simple mercenary group. By then however, the damage had been done and bounties were put on all the members. As a result, Pigma quit since he was in it for just the money, claiming that the team meant "nothing" to him. Andrew was subsequently kicked off the team two years later due to his supposed God Complex that plagued him after the death of his Uncle.

After the Lylat Wars, he never really considered himself a bad person, just someone who was hired to do bad things. Yet he continued to do these bad things without really thinking them over. There was no question on what the reason was now that he looked back on it.

"Greed Peppy, greed." He replied somberly.

"I'm not surprised. Who wouldn't want fame and fortune? Some would go to the edge of the world to get their fifteen minutes, even if it means hurting others." The hare took his glasses and wiped off a smudge that was distracting him from continuing. " When those types of situations come up, you have to suppress those urges, and that appears to have happened with you and Panther." Peppy patted the lupines back as if to say "way to go!".

"I wish I could say Leon did that, but I don't think he's going anywhere any time soon."

"If he wishes to remain the way he was, that's his choice."

"I don't see him ever changing. He's too stubborn to do that."

"His loss I guess…"

This made Wolf feel rather significant. For the first time, he really felt as though he had changed for the best since his departure from Star Wolf. He had gained a new found respect for the aging hare, which was definitely a surprise since he already respected him a whole lot. However, now it wasn't just respect for a fellow pilot, it was respect for someone he could refer to as a member of his own family.

"Peppy, I think we just had a moment there, and I'm happy that it occurred."

"Yeah, I'm prone to those. Being the wise man of the group causes that to happen a lot. I wish we could talk some more, but I have some business to attend to on the bridge." He stood up and pressed his hands against his lower back, making a loud crack resonate through the room. "You wanna talk, I'm always available. You take it easy now Wolf. " He said as he left the room, once again leaving the lupine to himself.

"Thanks…" He mumbled, knowing that Peppy was out of earshot by then. "You too Peppy…"

**Authors Note:**

**_Only seven more chapters left! Prepare yourself for a roller coaster ride that will follow!_**


	23. On The Attack

_**Chapter Twenty Two: On The Attack**_

_**Authors Note:**_

_**As the Stephen King short story says: "Everything's Eventual" and the closing of Oblivion is exactly that. Consider this the beginning of the end. What you are about to experience will most likely be the most action packed chapters I've ever written before. Please do read and review them all because I really want to know what you guys think of my first attempt at chapters of this caliber.**_

_**And one last thing, I put the lyrics of these songs I chose to use as inspiration for the chapter because I believe they can really add something to the story themselves. I wish for you to also look up these songs because I think it will make the experience of the chapter even better. This song in particular, I would consider to be the theme song for Star Fox Oblivion. Because of that, the lyrics will be presented in their entirety.**_

* * *

Can you hear their cries?  
Nowhere can the children run to hide.  
Crimson rivers,

Flow down hills.  
Atone our ills,  
And woe to all her songs of love.

A farewell to arms…

Mutilated lives,  
Blackening as coffin line the side  
Filled with fathers.

Who has won?  
When only sons  
Hold their grieving heads and mourn.

A farewell to arms!

Always our souls entwine!  
Erase this vast divide!  
Deaf ears our voices rest!  
Tyrant, this is protest!

Who has won?  
Yes, who has won?

I'll wave this flag of white,  
So the venged see the light!  
We'll pay for closed eyes  
With our genocide!

Piercing the masquerade!  
March to the death parade!  
Trade no humanity  
For pearls of the slavery!

In the depth of mind the heart will find  
The truth of our leader.  
We'll try the facts so through the cracks  
May fall the lying cheater!

Who has won when we're all dead?

I'll wave this flag of white,  
So the venged see the light!  
We'll pay for closed eyes  
With our genocide!

So is this how we live?  
Or is this how we die?

Black blood dripping from platinum fangs!  
Rich blood flees while our poverty hangs!

Shepherds they herd the mindless trance,  
As the flock follows the puppet's dance  
In a fatal romance!

All that they needed was  
A pretext, war's next!  
Heads to the chopping blocks  
And our necks are next!  
For those we died,  
Who fought for our rights,  
Whose children now slaves,  
They're turning in their graves!

War hawks and senators  
They sit tight, so trite!  
Never their sons will know  
What it's like to fight!  
But soldiers are dead,  
And children have bled,  
And the silence is numb,  
What have we become?!

GOD SAVE US!

A farewell to arms…

Machine Head - "A Farewell To Arms"

* * *

**Location Unknown**

"Sir, Hammerhead is on the line. He says it's important."

"Put him on speaker…" Friedrich hastily replied to his assistant as the sound of static briefly echoed through the intercom. A deep voice was heard clearing his throat.

"Friedrich…" The voice of Hammerhead Orglich boomed. "There is some information that I believe could become vital to someone like you in the near future."

The greyhound's ears perked up and his tail stood at attention. "I'm listening…"

"Does the name Otto von Hiedrich mean anything to you?" Friedrich's tail now began to slowly wag back and forth as an uneasy smile began to form.

"As a matter of fact, it does…"

"I thought so. Roughly three weeks ago, there was a group of men we were in search of for quite some time. We ended up finding them, but they were able to escape before we could apprehend them. Apparently, they had built a dreadnought-class cruiser using spare parts in the area they had taken shelter." Friedrich frowned at the statement.

"And what does this have to do with Otto?" He demanded.

"He was one of the escapee's…" Friedrich stood silent, showing very little emotion on his face.

"So?"

"So, we were able to fire a tracking device onto the ship before it got away. They went to Corneria, and left a few days later. But now, our sensors indicate that he is not alone. They're coming your way Friedrich." Now, the canine was slightly concerned, however it quickly passed as he realized whoever was following him couldn't hold up against the likes of him. The Great Line's defense would overpower a simple hunk of sheet metal easily, and with the Besdolorian government oblivious to his whereabouts, they could handle it without any interruptions.

"We'll deal with them accordingly. Thank you Hammerhead, your alliance has once again proved to be highly beneficial."

* * *

**Four Days Later…**

**Great Fox III**

Fox was finally beginning to get into a steady sleep pattern for the first time in months. The vulpine found it quite ironic since he this whole situation seemed to be a bit on the stressful side. But tonight, he bunked peacefully in his quarters. He remained in his own little world, dreaming up whatever he fancied…

"FOX!" Falco screamed as he banged loudly on the door. The sound immediately shook Fox out of his slumber. The vulpine looked over at the clock on his nightstand which read **2:47 AM CST**. It was obvious that the reason Falco had attempted to wake him was something of grave importance. He didn't hesitate on getting up, and clumsily putting on a t-shirt that had been laying on the floor since the previous night. Still in a bit of a semi-conscious state, Fox stumbled over to the door and opened it. The moment the door opened, Falco began to explain what was going on without skipping a beat.

"Otto said there's a group of ships ahead, and they're from The Great Line."

"How can he be sure?"

"Do you want me to put him on the comm?" Fox nodded in approval as they began to walk toward the bridge, where the rest of the team was already assembled. Everyone seemed anxious to know what was going on since they all seemed to get the same rude awakening as Fox.

"Go ahead Peppy." The avian swiftly ordered.

"Alright, Otto this will take a moment. I'm not even sure if it will work on your end but it should still work for us…"

Peppy pressed a button on the control panel. The result was a loud crackle, followed by a holographic image of the brown Shepherd Hound that went by the name of Otto appearing in the middle of the room. He appeared to be surprised at something, apparently the hologram was operating on _The Shadow _as well.

"Wow, I really didn't expect that to work." The canine said, stunned by what everyone assumed to be the hologram of Fox on the other end.

"Yeah, one second Otto, we're gonna link Bill up too." The hare responded back. A few seconds later, it was now Bill Grey, who also seemed to be restless, appearing next to Otto's hologram.

"Okay, we're ready Otto." The hare stated.

"Alright…" He nervously uttered, trying to clear his throat. "Gentlemen, if you look on your radar you will notice that there is a group of roughly forty fighters ahead and two carriers. We tried to identify them, but no information came up on it which means that it's The Great Line. None of their ships are properly archived so they would show up without any identity." There was an awkward pause as he waited for someone to speak up.

"Do you think they know who we are?" Bill asked curiously.

"Probably, but we can't be sure. Either way, they are more than likely going to attack us. We need to get the fighters ready as soon as possible." It became silent again. This time it was a bit more forced than the last since the conversation appeared to have ended.

"Well what are we waiting for?" Fox announced. "Let's get a move on!"

* * *

**Aircraft Hold**

The hold where all the ships were being held was filled with both people and noise. Not everyone was going to be flying today, someone would need to stay aboard to keep track of the ship's diagnostics as the battle ensued. Everyone agreed that since Erika was the least experienced in an Arwing, she would remain inside.

"Maybe next time…" Falco explained reassuringly. "I have to get ready now."

"Okay, I'm not one of those people that get all emotional over things like this because I know the risk and I won't let it get in our way. I'll just say this: Stay safe." She gently planted a kiss on his cheek before they shared an embrace. Their tender moment was short lived though, as Fox cleared his throat to get his attention.

"We have to go." He said remorsefully. Falco understood and began to prepare himself mentally for the battle that loomed.

"I'll be back Erika. I love you" Was all he could utter before being whisked away to his Arwing.

* * *

**Deep Space**

Everyone had taken to their personal crafts and made their way out to the skies. It consisted of Fox, Falco, Peppy, Slippy, Co'ort, Lars, and Andre in their Arwings, Wolf and Panther in their Wolfens, and Bill and ten of his own men in their own personalized fighters simply named Ark, a two person fighter (which however in this case, was used for only one) that had the speed and maneuverability, but lacked the firing power that the other two ships had.

Fox could now see the ships so clearly, he could count how many there were without much of a problem. The silver and black crafts were boxy but appeared to be very maneuverable. Behind them were two gigantic carriers with similar color designs and appeared to be about the same size as the _Great Fox III_. The vulpine messed around with the radio until he was on an open channel and began to broadcast .

"This is Fox McCloud of the Star Fox team. All approaching ships please identify yourselves…"

There was no response.

"I repeat, this is Fox McCloud of the Star Fox team. All approaching ships identify yourselves right now!"

Once again, no answer.

"This is your last warning, all approaching ships identify yourselves NOW!"

The moment the words escaped his muzzle, a wave of bombs and laser blasts came at them. There was plenty of time to react however, and everyone made the proper evasive maneuvers. There was no need to communicate the next move. Within seconds, everything had become an all out war zone.

Bill's men had split up into two separate groups to cover more ground, sending one into the actual frontline. The other group, which included Bill, went toward the enemies carriers via the side. The first group immediately suffered a handful of casualties in a fatal game of chicken. However, some of the men who had sacrificed themselves were able to bring a few of The Great Line's ships with them. Guilt naturally settled in to Bill for allowing his own men to take the battle into their own hands and make such a choice, but it would be something he would have to get over.

Fox and Peppy were in a tight formation, speeding by the enemies with no fear and maneuvers that rivaled even the most hard fought pilots. It was clear that the enemy was taken by surprise when the duo would swoop underneath them, make a complete one-eighty back their way and take them down without even knowing what hit them.

"Keep up the good work old-timer!" Fox screamed into his communicator as he scrambled to dodge a group of incoming lasers.

"Will do." The hare replied enthusiastically. "Just like old times eh?"

"You know it…"

Slippy and Falco decided to team up with Otto's fighters and work their way down through the middle. They were prepared to fight through the eye of the storm, ganging up on stray fighters and taking them down when vulnerable. Some would consider it cheap, but the people they were fighting were already cheap, so why be civilized?

Lastly, Wolf and Panther took a more discreet approach by sneaking around the edge in order to reach the carriers before anyone else. Their plan was halted quickly though, so they decided to merely provide backup for Bill and his men.

Much of the battle was scattered, leaving Erika unsure what to do with the _Great Fox III _and it's weapon system. Her tentativeness stopped her from making a move at first, but she realized the battle could be decided fairly quickly if the mother ships were taken down first. Another thing she was unaware of was the actual firepower the plasma beam she was about to use had. After quickly locking onto one of the ships, she set off the beam.

Underneath her feet, there was a strong vibration. The bay that held the beam was beginning to open, allowing it to power up in the process. Outside, Erika could see a bright blue light beginning to radiate from what appeared to be right below the windows. It's intensity reached a peak that nearly blinded the avian, but only for a moment as the light suddenly faded away. But this too was a brief occurrence because moments later, the entire ship began to shake violently as a turquoise beam blasted away from the ship.

Erika watched in awe as the beam blistered through the skies, enveloping a few enemy ships with it, before ravaging it's targeted carrier. The blast split the ship in half, with the front third of it shattering upon impact. Anyone who survived the initial explosion would die of hypoxia within minutes.

Back in _The Shadow, _Otto and Teveroth were watching the event unfold before their eyes. While the canine was simply amazed by the power the _Great Fox III_ had, Teveroth was worried. The grey furred lupine could see something that Otto obviously couldn't: a shockwave…

"Oh no…"

"What Tev?"

"Grab something…"

* * *

"Holy shit!" Lars exclaimed over the comm link. "That was fuckin' amazing!"

"Man, we haven't used that in ages. Great work Erika!" Fox said ecstatically.

"Always glad to be of service." She replied.

Their celebration was short lived though, as Teveroth was not alone. Andre could see the imminent danger coming their way. He quickly cued the mic and spoke into it.

"Brace yourselves!" Was all he could say before the shockwave enveloped both the enemy and the team were enveloped by the shockwave.

Everyone tossed and turned violently as they continued to be pushed back by the forces being placed upon them. To Fox, it was a wild roller coaster with him merely being a passenger along for the ride. Further in the distance, he could see the other carrier had already been struck and appeared to be deteriorating rapidly. He had no idea if it had reached any of their own carriers but he assumed that they wouldn't be hit with as much force as they had taken. Based on the fact that the Arwings were able to withstand the blast, it was safe to say that it would do the same.

When things began to calm back down, Fox searched for the rest of the team. All around him were the shattered remains of the enemies ships. Apparently they were not built to withstand an event like what had just occurred. What worried him the most was the fact that he had no idea how far everyone else had broken through the fleet. If they had gone far enough, they could have ended up in the same situation as The Great Line.

"Fox here, is everyone okay?" He said over the open channel. Within seconds, there were three responses almost simultaneously from the _Great Fox III, The Shadow, _and _Canis_. All were in good condition and appeared to be fine. He could only hope for the same result with everyone else. He relayed another message to the open channel and waited once more for an answer.

"Falco here. Slippy is fine, but I think his radio's busted." It was a brief sigh of relief, but only when everyone has confirmed their status would be able to relax.

"I'm fine, but my troops have suffered massive casualties." Bill crackled with a heavy sigh, making Fox frown with slight grief. "I think Andre and Lars are up ahead. They look fine to me."

"Can either of you confirm that?" Fox questioned hesitantly. There was some sort of response back. It was clearly Lars, but it ended up being garbled and incomprehensible, however the words "okay" and "heading back" were clearly heard.

"Me and Wolf are okay, we will need some help navigating our way out of here though, it's a mess." Panther spoke.

"Okay, that settles it for them. Have you heard anything from Peppy?"

Fox had almost forgotten about him, he looked around to see if there was any sign of him. The search turned up with nothing. It was at that very moment that the vulpine realized he was facing toward his own ships

"Hold on let me get a better view." He announced while beginning to turn around.

When he had completed the maneuver, he was able to get a true scope of the damage done by the blast. Right in front of him was a fully intact wing from one of the Great Line fighters. It was spinning wildly like a propeller of death. Any movement forward would rip the front end of the Arwing to shreds. He slowly shifted to the left and worked his way around it to see if there was anything resembling an Arwing. It was clear that something had gone wrong during the shockwave, but Fox wasn't giving up on him that easily. This was the man who had been a father figure for him since his fathers passing eighteen years ago. He wasn't sure if he could handle it again.

"Do you need an escort Fox?" Otto asked.

"I don't know yet…" He said apathetically.

It didn't take him long to find what he was looking for. After navigating through a maze of sheet metal and partially destroyed ships, he found Peppy's Arwing standing almost completely vertical.

"I found Peppy guys, I-" He stopped mid-sentence as he saw the ship turn back upright and reveal the damage to it.

The front end was completely sheared off by what appeared to be another ship that had collided with his own. It had ripped off enough to breach the cockpit, thus ending the life of Peppy Hare. Fox didn't react immediately, reality was still attempting to sink in but the vulpine just wouldn't allow it.

_Wake up Fox, please just wake up!_

"Fox, what's going on?" Falco questioned. Instead of an actual reply, he began to hear what appeared to be stifled sniffling and mumbling. "Foxie, talk to me!"

_Everyone I love…gone…_

It was another thirty seconds before he responded back. It appeared as though he was struggling to gain some composure. Before he said anything, the vulpine was heard taking a deep breath and exhaling it slowly.

"Not…" Fox said before a hiccup stopped him from finishing. The vulpine couldn't hold back any longer, and let out a sorrowful scream into the microphone for all to hear, followed by a mournful whisper: "Not again..."


	24. PLAY ME

_**Chapter Twenty Three: PLAY ME…**_

**_Authors Notes:_**

**_Document Editors being a bitch so everything is going to be indented a bit wierd._**

* * *

I see it around me  
I see it in everything  
I could be so much more than this

I said my goodbye's  
This is my sundown  
I'm gonna be so much more than this

With one hand high  
You'll show them your progress  
You'll take your time  
But no one cares  
No one cares

Jimmy Eat World - "My Sundown"

* * *

**Three Hours Later…**

**Great Fox III**

_Great Fox III _was oddly silent following the battle. The engines had been shut down on all three ships to allow time for repairs and such, making it feel even more empty. But saying that it was empty was an understatement, the Star Fox team had just lost the last surviving member of the original squad of mercenaries they currently flew their banner under.

Falco walked down the halls toward his captains quarters, knowing that he was still coping with the loss of what he considered to be his adopted father. While everyone was mourning in some way, it was obvious that Fox would take it the hardest. While continuing his trek, the avian noticed Wolf's door was wide open. When he reached the doorway, he found the lupine laying down on his bed, still wearing his black flight suit, with one leg bent slightly. A picture frame laid on his chest, but the lack of luminosity in the room made it impossible to make out what was in the picture. In his mouth hung a cigarette that continued to burn brightly in the abnormally dark room.

The burning embers from the tip suddenly tilted in his direction, telling Falco that Wolf turned over to see who was at his door. The avian stood silent as though he would become invisible if he stood completely still. The cigarette began to move once more, now pointing to the ground where it was put out as Wolf pushed the end down onto the hard-metal floor, and smeared it. The grey wolf took the picture he had and placed it behind his body. He then began to sit upright and turned on the light located on the nightstand by his bed, revealing a somber looking lupine hunched over his bedside. This surprised Falco to some degree. While he had seen his emotional side previously, this wasn't one of those things he expected to see him be like this.

"You okay Wolf?"

He looked up, revealing his eye patch to be missing. "Not really. I've just been in a bit of a haze since docking…"

"Yeah, I can understand that…"

Wolf didn't really feel like talking to Falco about the conversation he had with Peppy a few nights prior. It was one of those things he wanted to keep personal . Since he had arrived back in his room, the entire conversation kept playing in his head. To him, it was torturing him because of the last statement he made to him that night:

"_You wanna talk, I'm always available. You take it easy now Wolf."_

He was never able to take him up on the offer, but he wanted to. It was as though Peppy became his own personal priest who he could confess anything to without worrying about the judgment of others. He could try to talk with Falco about stuff like this, but for some reason, he felt as though it would be best not to since he had to deal with Erika, who couldn't help but feel partially responsible for what happened. While he considered Panther to be his best friend, it was these kinds of problems he failed to give good advice for. Slippy was in the same boat as Panther was. As for Fox, it was just out of the question.

"How's he doing?" The lupine questioned, obviously referring to Fox.

"I was about to check on him to see."

"Has he left his room?" The avian nodded in disproval. "Damn…He'll be okay, right?"

Falco sighed uneasily. "He's been through this three times already, and he almost didn't make it last time. We can only hope so…"

"Alright, I'll let you go now." He despondently stated. "I'd like some more time to myself." Falco adhered to his request and left the room following a brief "goodbye". But now that he was alone, he didn't want to be. By the time he realized this, Falco was already too far down the hall to reach. He would be forced to remain solitary.

_Hold on…_ He thought as he eyed the small camera in the corner of the room by his television.

_I just need to talk to someone, even if she doesn't respond back…_

* * *

The lupine grabbed his eye patch, walked over to the television, and turned it on. He began to put his camera in place and set up the recorded video message, which was done via a keyboard hooked up to the TV right underneath it. It was almost like a primitive version of a computer. When it asked who was to receive the message, he froze. He really was nervous about doing this, but he felt as though there was no other choice for him.

"Okay…" He took a deep breath. "Everything will be fine…"

He slowly typed out the name : SERENA O'DONNELL. When he filled it out, it loaded up the camera and within a few seconds, his image was now appearing on the screen. Wolf was ready to begin recording. He took a moment to think about what he would say, making sure it would actually mean something. It would be the first time he would speak to her since their breakup. With a few specific things lingering in his head, he sat down in the chair by the television, and pressed RECORD.

The moment the red light flickered on, he blanked. With an annoyed grunt, he turned off the camera and tried to remember what he was going to say. It never did come back to him, but something else did. It didn't even have anything to do with the recent events, but he knew it would be significant enough to possibly get a response. He took his seat again and began to record.

"Serena, it's me." He said remorsefully. "I was just wondering how you're doing? I haven't talked to you since, well…our sunrise. I just wanted to make sure that you were okay." He paused again, feeling something building up inside of him. It was pain, the pain of not being with her, the pain of doing what he did, and the pain of losing her. He may have thought that he got over it, but once he was reminded of her, it all flowed right back to where it started. "I'm doing…" He put his head down and pinched the sinuses above his eye, trying his best to keep his poise. "I'm doing okay, but it hasn't exactly been the best of times for me." He could tell now that the shedding of tears was inevitable, so he decided to cut the message short, otherwise it would be five to ten minutes of him bawling his eyes out. "If you don't respond to this, I understand. It would mean the world to me if you did though. I also know that we may never have a shot together again, but just remember that I-" It suddenly hit him, the slow but steady flow of tears caused him to seemingly involuntarily bury his face in his lap. He tried his best to force himself to stop, eventually succeeding after a few minutes. The lupine didn't feel like resetting the video again, and quickly composed himself to finish his statement.

"I still love you…And I know you do too…" The tears were coming again and he felt as though he had gotten his message across, so he abruptly stopped the recording and once again let his sensitive side take over. It was briefer this time, and when it passed, he sent the video. He had no regrets when it came to what was in the video he had sent, it was the real Wolf O'Donnell that he had grown to know since meeting Serena. Afterward, he was drained from everything and decided that he needed to try and sleep this all off. So he went back over to his bed and grabbed the picture still laying on the sheets, which was revealed to be the one that Serena gave him before they left, placed it on the nightstand, and collapsed onto the bed. Even with the light on next to him, he fell asleep fairly quickly, tears still forming in his eye.

* * *

It was pitch black inside Fox's quarters. Not even the slightest beam of light made it's way through the cracks in the door. Much like the ship though, the room was completely silent with the vulpine not even vocalizing any emotion whatsoever. The past few hours had really drained him. With the realization of losing another loved one, Fox had shut down. He spoke to no one, he saw nobody, he appeared to be going into a repressed state that lacked any feeling whatsoever.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Fox came back to his senses. It started off as a few deep breaths, and slowly evolved into an all out lament. It felt as though the pain would never end, because as he began to get over the loss of one person, another would die. It was a cycle that had been going on since his childhood, starting with his mother and moving onto his father, his girlfriend, and now the father figure he had for almost two decades. The vulpine wondered who could be next, and wished that he wouldn't have to see that day.

_I don't even know if I wish to see tomorrow…_

Much like last time, suicide was on his mind. However, it wasn't as severe as it was previously. There was no drinking his problems away, his sobriety may have contributed to his saner approach to the subject. However, the thought remained in the back of his head.

There was the gentlest knock on the door, but in the silence of everything, it was audible. The hatch slowly turned before finally being locked in place as the door finally opened up. It was no surprise when he saw Falco enter the room and turn the lights on.

"Hey Foxie…" He uttered with a heavy heart. "Everything alright?" The falcon already knew the answer, but it was the thought that counted. Fox could only manage to make a whimper-like exhale. It was hard to watch Fox go through something like this again. A single tear formed in his eye and slowly rolled down his face and onto the cold floor.

"Fox, I can understand that you are upset and everything. If you need someone to talk to, you know that I'm always open." There was a brief pause, Falco could tell that Fox wanted to say something, but he appeared to be frustrated for some reason. "Foxi-"

"No you don't." The vulpine replied as he bared his teeth.

"What?"

Fox sat up and stared menacingly into Falco's eyes. "You don't even know the meaning of upset!" He howled at him. "One-by-one, EVERYONE KEEPS DYING ON ME!" Fox collapsed back onto his bed and covered his face as be wiped away the already drying tears from his face. The avian's fists began to clench, realizing he had never told Fox about what happened to his own family before. "How do you think it feels to lose your own family?!"

Falco had reached his own breaking point and decided to spill the beans. "Well how do YOU think it feels to fucking WITNESS the death of your parents at the hands of a f-" The rest of his backlash was muffled by tears not of sadness, but of rage at the assailant.

He had realized that this was a horrible time to bring up such a thing when they should be there to support each other in a time of grieving. But the damage had been done and he had revealed to one of his best friends that they had something extremely significant in common. He looked over to the bed and saw that Fox staring at him in shock. Falco was unsure what to say, especially when Fox said nothing back. The bird put his head down and leaned against the wall.

"Well," He uttered with a croaking voice due to the mucus that was slowly forming in the back of his throat. "there you have it. We've got a common factor between the two of us…" Fox still said nothing, he was stunned by this sudden revelation. It was almost as though he had gone back to the state he was in earlier, no emotion whatsoever.

"Foxie?" He cautiously said, wondering what was going on with Fox

"I'm sorry Falco…" He finally responded. Falco felt guilty that he was now the one getting the attention, so he dismissed the reply.

"No Fox, it was so many years ago. I can't keep living in the past. What we need to do is get our shit together and show Peppy, wherever he is, that we can continue this operation without him. If we're gonna do that, we have to remain strong for everyone."

Fox knew that what Falco was saying was one hundred percent correct. This was a time of war and matters like these could not interfere with the battle. While he could mourn in the safety of his own quarters, he couldn't allow it to effect him to the point that he was being a danger to others and himself. Fox was able to put a smile on his face for a split second, making Falco ease up after al the tension that had built up over the past few minutes began to boil over.

"Do you still need some time to yourself?" The avian questioned. The response was a nod that said "yes". Much like Wolf's wishes, he followed the orders, but this time he would be stopped.

"Falco!" Fox blurted out, after he turned around to hear what he had to say, the vulpine continued. "Pleas tell Erika it wasn't her fault. I'm sure she feels guilty right now, but this isn't something I would personally blame her for."

"Thanks…"

**Authors Notes:**

_**Couldn't help but feel as though this chapter was lacking something. It still is a great chapter though and I hope y'all enjoyed it. **_


	25. The Pillars Of Creation

_**Chapter Twenty Four: The Pillars Of Creation**_

_**Authors Notes:**_

_**Four Words: Eta Carinae, Eagle Nebula…google image them…**_

_**Read and review this one for me, I'm interested in hearing what you guys think about this slightly philosophical chapter…**_

_**SHORT CHAPTER INCOMING!**_

* * *

I have nothing left to give  
I have found the perfect end  
You were made to make it hurt  
Disappear into the dirt  
Carry me to heaven's arms  
Light the way and let me go  
Take the time to take my breath  
I will end where I began

And I will find the enemy whithin  
Because I can feel it crawl beneath my skin

Dear Agony  
Just let go of me  
Suffer slowly  
Is this the way it's got to be?  
Don't bury me  
Faceless enemy  
I'm so sorry  
Is this the way it's gotta be?  
Dear Agony

**Breaking Benjamin - "Dear Agony"**

* * *

As the day progressed, Fox had finally begun to walk around and socialize with the rest of the team. Despite the progress being made, the vulpine remained slightly sheltered, with him going back to his quarters every now and then to lament. During those brief episodes, he would spend most of the time sitting by the porthole looking out into space. In times of distress, he found the clusters of stars and galaxies as a safe haven from everything going wrong in his life in spite of their lethality. In fact, almost everything he was looking at was dangerous, but it was their beauty that cloaked their fatal secrets.

It was one of these times where Fox had reached the point of acceptance, the acceptance of his loss. It began as the act normally did, with him returning to his quarters on the verge of losing it once again. The fox began to walk over to his personal washroom and splashed a little bit of water on his face. While the liquid was refreshing and seemed to calm him slightly, the moment he looked up and saw his reflection in the mirror, the grief came back to him.

"Is this what my life is going to be?" He said to himself amidst a slow but steady flow of tears. He left the washroom and approached the porthole where he would likely spend the next half an hour at. With a keen eye, the vulpine began to observe the universe as it continued its normal processes.

All around him were bright colors from numerous corners of the galaxy, but none of it was interesting to him this time. However, wasn't long before something caught his eye. In actuality, it was two objects that were close to each other that interested him. While they were both extremely distant, their features were nearly crystal clear.

The first object was a dying star that took the form of a supernova. The bright pink colored gasses that were being expelled from the blinding purple center created a reddish halo around the entire being. It was obvious that this star had lived for many years and was prosperous in its endeavors, whatever they may have been. In the end, it was able to go out in a spectacular fashion, creating a mesmerizing light show that was left for all to see. It was the stars "swan song" so-to-speak.

The other stellar object was located slightly to the left of the supernova. Due to a forced perspective, the object oddly seemed to be larger compared to the previous phenomenon. Upon closer inspection, it became apparent that this was a nebula, the source of all life for stars. The towering structure made completely out of bright-orange dust at the base, and a blue tint at the top, loomed over the landscape. The sight brought euphoria to Fox, who couldn't help but feel as though there was a connection between the two objects.

_With death…comes a new beginning…_

The vulpine continued to rack his brain over what he was seeing. He just knew that they were there for a reason, and not just by chance. As a young kit, his own mother would talk much about the stars and how they told us our own future. For the first time in a very long while, those memories were coming back to him.

"_But can't we change what the stars say?"_

"_Of course you can! You just have to believe in yourself, and follow up with your promises. If you do that, anything is possible."_

"_Anything?"_

"_Anything…"_

Thinking back on the times when his mother was still alive only made him sadder, but at the same time, he felt a burst of power. Fox had been through so many hardships in his life, and it was now that he believed that he could continue onward. The vulpine wiped his tears away on his sleeve and took a deep breath.

"I'm gonna do it…" He uttered. "I'm doing it for you all…" He fell to his knees and let out the lightest whimper.

In the doorway stood Wolf, cautiously watching over Fox since he had returned to his room. While he had been able to stay secretive, he decided that his charade would have to end now. He walked over to the vulpine who had now noticed his presence, and placed a paw on his shoulder.

"Everything alright?" He said nervously, as he was unsure of what to really say.

"Yeah…just needed a moment there."

"We were just wondering if there's any orders to re-fire the engines?" Fox looked back up at the lupine with a bit of a smile and stood back up, appearing more confident than ever.

"Besdolore won't wait for us…" This made Wolf reply in the same manner.

"There's the Fox McCloud I know!"

* * *

_**Authors Notes:**_

_**Wow, despite the shortness of this, I am absolutely ecstatic on how this "interlude" turned out! I really hope you guys like this one a lot!**_


	26. The Battle For Besdolore

_**Chapter Twenty Five: The Battle For Besdolore**_

_**Author Notes**_

_**Damn, it's been almost a month! Where does the time go? Anyway, I cut out one chapter (it was basically filler) so there's only three left. I hope you enjoy them!**_

* * *

With aversion, this insertion  
came so swiftly  
Cut the cord, from this day forward  
We'll be drifting

No direction, no affection  
Watch the soul dive  
You're dissected, resurrected  
Still don't know why  
This illness is like a monster that is  
eating us alive

Hold on, be strong  
So right, so wrong  
With all of our senses  
All of our defenses  
Hold on, be strong

Korn - "Hold On"

* * *

**Four Days Later…**

**Great Fox III**

**Aircraft Hold**

**ETA: 42 Minutes**

The hold was quiet, save for the occasional metallic clang made by Fox's boots as he surveyed his Arwing in preparation for the confrontation. His posture was rigid, standing tall as he focused on the ship. He knew that in less than an hour, he would be inside that fighter, going up against an unknown amount of enemies. The possible outcomes were infinite, but the vulpine tried not to think about them. They were irrelevant, as it would only cloud his mind more than it already was.

"I was wondering where you were…" Falco said as he appeared from behind one of the other Arwings. The startled fox let out a slight gasp before realizing who it was.

"Jeez, don't do that again!" He replied with a barely visible grin.

"Sorry." The avian chuckled. "I just came down to tell you that Bill was able to contact Besdolore. They're going to help us…"

"Will they arrive before the battle starts?"

"They're not a hundred percent sure…" Fox's ears hung low, but only for a moment as he put on a smile again.

"It's better than no help at all. We'll take anything we can get." Fox wanted to continue, but he felt as though the conversation had ended, so he decided to bring up another subject.

"How's Erika handling-"

"She's doing alright. Her guilt still lingers a little but deep down, she knows it's not her fault…"

"Yeah…" The room went quiet. Once again, the contact their boots made with the floor was all that resonated. Falco knew that Fox was still troubled, but it seemed to be less noticeable than it was a few days ago. There was only one way to find out…

"Are you ready for this?" The avian asked with sincerity. The vulpine was frozen in his attentive stance.

"I'm not sure, but do I have a choice?" He sighed, still motionless. "We're putting our lives on the line to save a planet we hardly know anything about. Does that mean anything to you?"

"Well, it means a lot of things. It shows our will to help out no matter what the situation for one thing."

"Exactly, and we've done that for years now." The intensity in the vulpine voice began to rise. "We could just give two shits about this planet and abandon these guys, but we don't. And we sure as hell won't now, not after getting this far…"

"See Foxie, that's what I like about you. You're up for anything at anytime, no matter what the circumstances." Falco replied with a smile.

"Well, that's just the kind of person that I am."

"Wouldn't have it any other way…"

* * *

**Near Besdolore**

Up in the distance, the armada led by the Star Fox team, already in their fighters, could see a wall of blinding-metallic fighters and carriers. By Fox's estimate, there was about seven carriers up ahead. While that wasn't as many as he had expected, their size was much larger than those he encountered days before, so they made up for it.

Over the radio came a thickly accented voice. It was none of the members of the fleet, but whoever it was obviously knew them. "Well if it isn't Otto and his star cast of freedom fighters. Allow me to introduce myself I'm-"

"We know who you are, Michael!" Otto replied from _The Shadow._

The voice chuckled for a moment. "Ah, Otto. So naïve…"

"What do you mean?"

"Haven't you figured it out yet? I am Friedrich Sturm."

Otto was speechless. His whole body went numb as the stunned canine looked out to the ships ahead of him, pondering how he could have let this happen. He was underneath his nose the entire time the mission took place, and he allowed the man he was after to get away with it all.

_Son of a bitch…_

"Ah yes, it couldn't have been any easier for you."

"Enough of the small talk Friedrich, we're here to fight." Fox interrupted.

"And who might you be?"

"I'm the guy who is gonna take down your tyrannical ass, that's who!"

"Hah! A fighting spirit! I love that, not that it'll do you any good. We've been ready to do this for quite some time, and I don't plan on losing…"

"Well neither do we!"

"We'll see about that." With that, the communication ceased, leaving nothing but dead air. Ahead of them, the fighters were beginning to advance on their position. Everyone waited anxiously for orders.

"Alright everyone, lets go!" Fox yelled into his mic while his Arwing began to thrust forward. Everyone else followed suit, and the battle began.

The vulpine went into the heart of the battle, with most of the team chasing. Every now and then he would fire in short bursts to suppress some of the enemies coming at him. Anything he didn't get, the rest of the group would. Fox was shocked at how quickly they were able to break through their fleet.

"How is everyone holding up?" He questioned.

"Can't really complain yet…" Falco replied, sounding as though he was more focused on what was ahead of him.

"These guys are surprisingly weak to be honest." Panther noted.

"Don't let your guard down yet Panther, they might have something up their sleeve." Wolf retorted swiftly. "If I've learned anything in the past few days, its that anything can, and probably will happen."

Back inside _The Shadow_, Otto and Teveroth were watching the battle unfold from a safer distance. The occasional stray ship that got past their fighters were taken out by Otto with the small, yet powerful blasters located on the bottom of the carrier. Along with Erika and some of Bill's men, Teveroth would relay information to everyone since they had a powerful radar that had a wider radius of detection compared to the Arwings and Wolfen's capabilities.

The jet black lupine was beginning to feel a bit useless though as the team was progressing through the enemies with very little effort involved. With each passing minute the screen began to become less crowded, until there was practically nothing but another wave of Friedrich's men that was up ahead of the group.

"This is the guy that set you up?" Teveroth asked sarcastically. "This'll be a piece of cake."

Otto wasn't taking the remark very well, but decided not to make a scene over it.

_Something isn't right…just like Prall. I know it!_

"Guys you have more targets up ahead. Stay alert." Teveroth said over the radio.

"We don't have a visual, but something is showing on our radar. Whatever it is seems to be right on top of us." Co'ort replied.

"Keep us updated…"

Otto suddenly turned around with a look of peril in his eyes. He knew something they didn't, and he was going to make sure that he wouldn't fall into the same trap again. The hound ran for the radio and cued the mic rather sloppily, causing some feedback to emit on the other end.

"Guys, get the hell out of there!" He demanded.

Fox replied with a flabbergasted sounding response "Otto, What's wrong?"

"It's an ambush!"

"What!?"

Before they knew it, the entire squadron was surrounded by hundreds of Friedrich's ships. They began to fire relentlessly on them, barely giving them a chance to catch their breath. It was clear that what they had experienced prior was merely an appetizer for what was to come. Everyone tried their best to maneuver through the enemies, while taking them out in the process.

Lars, Co'ort, and some of Bills soldiers were the first to break free of the struggle. Parts of their Arwings had gone from a bright silver color, to singed black from the blasts that hit them. From the outside, the two of them could pick off enemies a lot easier than if they were still in the hornets nest. Falco and Panther followed suit shortly afterward.

Unfortunately, for the others, it appeared as though they would be stuck there. Their attempts to escape were futile as they would be blocked out by the extremely agile enemies and the occasional explosion from what was a mix of both friends and foe.

"Tev' , we need some help here!" Slippy nervously stated.

"I can't find any openings! I'm trying my best here."

It was becoming quite obvious that they wouldn't be able to last much longer in the firefight. Even with most of the group out of the swarm, they were having problems getting a proper target as their movements were extremely erratic, while at the same time, they had to dodge the incoming fire. It was not one of the best-case scenarios. Something needed to be done, and fast. Turns out the man to do it would be Falco.

"Oh please make this work…" The avian uttered as he launched a Nova Bomb deep into the center of the firefight. Upon contact, the device exploded in a large fireball, collecting a handful of other ships in the vicinity. The explosion itself split the battle in half, this in turn confused the enemy. Fox and Slippy seized the opportunity and blasted their way out of the dogfight.

As he dodged the incoming laser blasts, Fox did a quick sweep of the area to see if there was any of his own men in trouble. Among the debris were a few destroyed ARK vehicles and a single Arwing. This caught his attention the most. He was a hundred percent sure it was an Arwing, but the question was whose it was?

"Everyone, give me a status report ASAP!" He sharply demanded. "Someone didn't make it…" There was a brief roll call, followed by a muffled grunt over the radio from Teveroth.

"Dammit…Andre…"

"Look Tev' , I hate to sound rude but we're in the middle of a battle and we need you to keep your cool, alright?" Falco replied.

"He's right man, we need to help them out as best as we can." Otto mentioned off hand. After a moment, the lupine nodded in agreement and continued to transmit information.

"What's the status on your damage, everyone?" He asked.

"Hold up, let me sync up with the team and I'll get back to you." Fox responded.

"My men have taken numerous casualties, and most who are still out there have taken critical damage, myself included. We're gonna have to pull out soon if we keep up this pace!" Bill panted distressfully. "I still have a lot of pressure being put on me! I could really use some help guys!"

"10-4, we'll cover you." One of his soldiers responded. Within seconds, the canine was surrounded by fellow ARK Fighters assisting him with fighting off the enemy.

The battle continued, and for Star Fox, it was beginning to get ugly. The constant barrage of enemies coming from the titanic carriers that Sturm commanded were beginning to be too much for them. It was at this point, where their last resort option was inevitable.

"Erika, we're gonna need you to try and take out one of the carriers on the double!" Lars relayed to _Great Fox III._

"I'm on it." The red feathered avian began to prepare the charge and picked a target to blast. Due to the sheer size of the carrier, she made sure that the blast would be more than enough to take it out in one shot. The shockwave itself could even cripple the others to some degree, but probably not be powerful enough to take them out as well.

"Everyone steer clear of the carriers, one minute until discharge!" She ordered.

Everything began to shake violently once again, as the laser began to charge up. This time, it was more erratic, forcing Erika to grab hold of the side of the control panel in order to stay on her feet. Out the window, she could see the team beginning to remove themselves from the general vicinity of Friedrich's carriers, with the enemy in tow.

"Thirty seconds…" Each second that passed felt like forever as the teams ships drew nearer. The fierce rumbles became so severe, it was beginning to make Erika nauseous. The cannon had finally reached critical mass and the time to fire had arrived…


	27. Cognizance

_**Chapter Twenty Six: Cognizance**_

* * *

Rob Dougan - "Clubbed To Death"

* * *

_**Thresher**_

**Bridge**

Friedrich was patiently watching the battle as it unfolded. The greyhounds keen eyes were focused on one of the separated groups that were retreating from his carrier and following the Star Fox squadron.

"Sir, we still have a few more men to deploy. Should we do so?" One of the grunts inquired.

"There will be no need to, this'll be over in no time…" He exclaimed with a grin. He could see that things were going better than planned, and he was going to come out victorious at this rate.

But as he silently celebrated, the canine saw something he had failed to bring into the equation. A bright beam of light suddenly shot from _Great Fox III_, making contact with the right-most carrier. Outside, there was a blinding flash that enveloped the area momentarily, followed by a blast that knocked practically everyone off of their feet. The lights went out and the ship began to list slightly to starboard, making the situation even worse for those trying to get their footing again. All around Friedrich, there were sirens blaring and emergency lights flashing in every direction. His ears rang so violently, that long term effects could drive one insane.

In this stressful situation, Friedrich did not panic. He was not the type of person that would do such a thing. However, deep within the crevices of his mind, was a suppressed thought of fear. He knew that he had let his guard down, and because of it, his own life could be in jeopardy. But still, he hid it well, but for how long?

As the ship slowly stabilized and the lights began to flicker back on, the soldiers began to regain their bearings and assess the situation. The alarms were still going off. Friedrich looked over to the control panels and saw that all information regarding the structural integrity of the midsection of the carrier was gone, indicating a catastrophic failure in that area. Even the slightest crack in the hull would take out the air supply within roughly ten minutes. The panels also indicated that their life support mechanism was destroyed by the shockwave, not that it would really matter since everyone the air supply was already compromised. While he had no idea what the condition of his other carriers were, he knew that him and his crew's fate had been permanently sealed.

"Sir?" One of the grunts quietly asked. The canine failed to respond. A sound began to emit from one of the sets of headphones that was on the control panel. He picked it up and listened in.

"Mayday! Mayday! _Storm _is losing power and our life support systems are failing! We have no word from _Hawking._ Who el-" The transmission was abruptly ended. Frustration began to show as the greyhound changed frequencies.

"Gamma Squadron, what is your status?" He spoke apathetically.

…Nothing…

"Gamma Squadron, what is your status?!" A little louder this time.

…Still nothing…

The canine stood at his post, not making a sound. Everything that he had worked for was either blown to bits or about to be its equivalent. In a way, he was disappointed. If it was going to end up like this, Friedrich would have rather preferred to die in style, like an explosion or a flurry of bullets. But in the end, he would merely die a possibly agonizing death as the air supply dwindled, leaving him to squirm until he finally passed out from the lack of oxygen getting to his brain. At least after that, it would be painless, but it was still what he considered to be a not-so dignified way out of this world.

Friedrich turned around and faced his fellow men, all watching him with intense curiosity. At the moment, they had no idea what was going on, but they did know that whatever was, had to be something of grave importance. The attentive leader still showed no signs of fear as he took a deep breath and began to speak.

"Gentlemen…I'm sorry I've failed you…"

* * *

_**The Shadow**_

**Bridge**

It was over before anyone knew it. All around the Star Fox squadron was debris for as far as the eye could see. The plasma cannon had done a lot better than expected, the resulting in four of the seven ships to be completely obliterated, and the other three to be crippled beyond repair. Large chunks of the previous were blasted so far, that they were beginning to burn up in the Besdolorean atmosphere. Once again, the Arwings, Wolfens, and ARK Fighters were able to withstand the forces that pummeled them as the shockwave hit them. It was eerily quiet, and nobody was sure if it was really over or not. Nobody wanted to ask, fearing that it would come back to bite them, so they waited…

Otto decided that he would be the first to break the silence after what felt like an eternity. He tried to say something, but all that escaped his muzzle was his steady, but at the same time, deep breaths. "It's done…" He finally uttered over the comm link weakly. There was no reaction to the statement, but he knew that they heard it. As the wreckage began to scatter, the ships began to turn back and head for their respective carriers.

Even though the man he had been waiting to defeat for almost half a year was now surely dead, he still felt empty. He never got to see Friedrich meet his demise, and to be honest, he wasn't even sure if he had died or not. Nobody knew of his deeds, and he would get no recognition from Besdolore. Thus, he would remain a drifter with his now smaller group of outcasts, in oblivion forever.

The hound got up from his seat and walked across the room and down into the hallway toward his quarters, which may have been better than _The Junkyard's _amenities, but at this time, felt oddly claustrophobic with it's clutter of metal and bed sheets. This sudden movement did not go unnoticed by Teveroth, who followed him to his room, but stopped himself from intruding. The lupine thought that whatever it was that was on Otto's mind was sudden and unplanned, so he thought it would be best that he stayed out of it. He also never thought of himself as much of a motivational type of person, so in a way, he believed that it was more appropriate for him to not interfere.

Teveroth sat himself back down at his post on the bridge and could see that the carriers were practically tearing themselves apart by then, the chance of any survivors in them appeared to be slim to none at the moment, making him grin widely. But further off in the distance, came something else. A maroon colored carrier that appeared to have more of a rounder appearance than the enemies was what he saw from his window. He was not aware of any other enemy fighters , and no orders were being given to attack, so with a cautious eye he surveyed the ship as it approached their general area.

As it drew closer, the actual size of the ship became quite apparent. It dwarfed _Great Fox III, Canis, _and _The Shadow_ by considerable amounts, with it's width outdoing the _Great Fox III_, the largest of the group;by roughly two. Length wise, the craft could have easily fit eight and a half of the same ship inside. The engines must have been surprisingly quiet, as there was no vibrations rocking the ship, it was truly mind-boggling. At this point, Teveroth was feeling extremely vulnerable and finally gave in.

"Guys, who the hell is this?" He anxiously inquired into his microphone.

"That?" Fox responded in a sly tone. "That my friend, is your future…"

* * *

Otto continued silently lay in his bunk, still in a bit of a pessimistic type of mood. Much like the majority of his time between his exile and his arrival on Bothsiloth, the canine was staring blankly at the ceiling, counting the rivets that held his ship together.

Without any announcement, Teveroth burst into his room with the widest of grins on his face. Otto was so startled, he burst out of his bunk to see what the commotion was all about, only to bang his head hard on the ceiling. He let out an annoyed grunt and attempted to regain his bearings before seeing that who had intruded.

"God dammit Tev, what the f-"

"Get your shit together, we're docking."

"Docking?! Where? And with whom?"

"The Besdolorean Army."

"What? Are we being-"

"No, we're going home…"

The words hit him with such a force, he had to take a step back just to keep his balance. It was too surreal for him to register it in his brain. He was liberated from the chains that the Besdolorean government had shackled onto him, and was free to return to the planet that he had once called home.

"But how?"

"Come down to the hangar…"

* * *

After a short walk, Otto found himself in the medium sized hangar that was in the lower decks of _The Shadow_. The surviving crew had already arrived back from the fight. Co'ort and Lars were leaning against one of their Arwings, talking about the battle and whatnot, Otto honestly didn't care at the moment because he noticed that there were two extra Arwings in the hangar. He had a feeling that he knew who had docked there.

Turns out his suspicions were correct as he found Fox and Falco waiting for him behind one of the fighters. It was obvious that they had something to do with all of this. Otto tried to say something, but he appeared to be lost for words.

"No need to say anything Otto, I'm sure this is all pretty shocking to you." The vulpine said.

"Yeah, I think we need to explain ourselves here." Falco responded back. "A few hours ago before the battle, Bill sent us a message telling him that he contacted the Besdolorean Army for some backup."

"Well look how that turned out…" Otto replied sarcastically, causing a nervous chuckle to erupt from the group.

"Yeah, but what he didn't tell us was that he also informed them of all the men had with us, yourself included. Obviously they recognized your name. But at the same time, they recognized another name, the name of the enemy we thought we were going up against; Michael Drescher."

Fox continued where Falco left off. "They remembered that you accused him of being a double agent. Apparently a few months ago they found Friedrich's body in an abandoned home, but an autopsy later confirmed that it was in fact just a body double. Upon looking at Michael's records, they found that both Sturm and Drescher had strikingly similar physical characteristics, and came to the conclusion that the two were the same person."

"So I guess I wasn't the only person he was able to fool. The fucker got by a whole military organization!"

"I know, it's pretty sad. However, because of all of this, they've cleared your charges and are allowing you to reside there again."

"I thought Bill didn't tell you that, Falco?"

"Well, yeah, he wasn't aware that it would cause all of this to occur. He literally got the news a few minutes ago."

"Point is, you're free."

"Damn, I guess this really is happening." Otto took a moment to gather his thoughts. "Look, I don't think I have enough time in my life to tell you how thankful I am for your help guys. Falco, if I hadn't run into you, who the hell knows what I'd be doing now."

"Hey, I aim to please." He replied as he outstretched his hand toward the canine, who heartily shook it. "Keep in touch, you got some talented men with ya. Wouldn't mind working with you guys again. And those Arwings, keep em'. We've got more than enough of those back in Corneria."

"Hah, thanks, and likewise." Otto then turned to Fox who was smiling, but still showed signs of distress.

"It sucks seeing people like you guys go." He replied. "They really don't come around that often. Falco wasn't kidding, you guys have a lot of potential. If this system doesn't have one already, I suggest that you think of setting up an official mercenary group. You can really rake in a lot of cash from it, which definitely won't hurt now since you'll have to re-establish yourself once again."

"You know, I might just do that. I can see it now; Star Hound, defenders of Besdolore!" He laughed at the thought. The response from Fox and Falco was mutual.

"Go for it, there needs to be more of those types of units in the galaxy. You might as well since you were a hired gun beforehand anyway."

"Will do." He sighed, looking back at Lars and Co'ort who were now joined by Teveroth. "Thanks again, for everything." As he walked over to his colleagues to explain what was to happen, the vulpine and his fellow avian pilot headed back to their Arwings, knowing that they had won in more ways than they would have ever thought.

* * *

**Authors Notes**

_**Coming up on the final chapter, I thought it would be appropriate to thank you for reading this piece of work. It's really rewarding to know that this still has followers. Hopefully I can publish the last chapter before the New Year arrives. But until then, I want to wish you a Happy Holidays.**_


	28. RE: PLAY ME

_**Chapter Twenty Seven: RE: PLAY ME…**_

**Authors Notes:**

_**This is it! Final chapter, the end of the line. Get ready…**_

* * *

The silence is taxing  
I'm waiting for something  
There's images of love and war  
And everything's here to explore  
Its all alike unusual  
A different place but beautiful  
And it is not quite as it seems  
I hear the children's laughs and screams

Its beautiful  
So beautiful  
Its beautiful

Do you believe in hallucinations, silly dreams or imagination  
Don't go away cause I feel you this time  
Don't go away cause I need you there this time  
Do you believe in hallucinations, any dream or its revelation  
Don't go away cause I need you here this time  
Don't go away cause I'm making you all mine

Angels and Airwaves - "Hallucinations"

* * *

**Captains Log**

_September 12__th__, 2053 _

_20:26_

_Our ETA on Corneria is roughly twenty-four hours. I think that everyone is looking forward to being back home, the past few weeks have really taken a toll on us. There was an unofficial memorial service for Peppy today, nothing fancy though. While it may not have been as lavish as the one he will be getting on the 18__th__, I think it was perfect as it was just us, the family he didn't have. It's a lot more personal when it's just with the people that you worked around for so long. Maybe it's just me, but I'm sure that he would've wanted it that way. _

_Despite everything that has occurred since March, I'm willing to say that in the end, we all won in some ways. As a team, we've all been able to connect more and be there for each other when peril struck. Never has this been more apparent in my thirteen years of service than now. Even when some of us were way down in the dumps, believing that we would never get out, someone was looking out for our best interests. No matter what the situation, someone was there to get us back on our feet. _

_So with all that said, a simple question comes to mind: "Was it worth it?". I've come to the conclusion that you can't answer that kind of question. There's that loophole where you say: "Well if this didn't happen then…", which technically can't be properly explained because it never occurred. You could say that "If we didn't go to Besdolore, then Peppy would still be alive.", but for all we know he could have died from some other circumstances (Well, death is eventual. We're all going to do it one day, but that's not the point). I can't change the past, but there's still a future that can , and I'll make sure that it' s a future I'll look forward to experiencing. Instead of looking at all the "what if's", I look at the "we did's". So, for the sake of actually answering this hollow question, I say that it was worth it._

* * *

**One Week Later…**

**Corneria City**

With the passing of Peppy's memorial service, the Star Fox team was left without any missions. For the first time in almost a year, the team was off-duty.

Without anything to do, everyone was forced to resume their old ways of living; the simple life as a citizen of Corneria. Fox continued to live in his thirtieth floor apartment in the heart of Corneria. He had not actually stayed there for quite some time, shortly after his psychological demons were put to rest, a string of missions came his way, forcing him to live on _Great Fox III_ since then. It was definitely a welcoming prospect for him to be back in his own abode, he had shared many memories there with Krystal before her death. Upon arrival, all of those times came back. They didn't dampen his spirits however, they merely brought joy to him, knowing that he had brought the same to someone at some time.

Slippy, being the mechanical genius he was, remained on _Great Fox III,_ tending to every little thing that was on the carrier. If there was the slightest malfunction, Slippy was on it. Unfortunately, this led to him being a bit isolated from the team for most of the time, but he was used to that anyway, it didn't bother him.

Panther, much like Fox, used this time to familiarize himself with his small studio located on the outskirts of the city. He would usually make house-calls at Falco's residence as Wolf continued to live there for the time being.

And so, this brings us to Falco, Erika, and Wolf…

* * *

"So, it looks like you two are really going places with this relationship ,eh?"

"Damn right. I think that you deserve some credit for that."

"Well, I wouldn't say-"

"Aww, come on! You were the one that pushed me to do all that."

"Ah, well, fair enough."

Falco and Wolf were relaxing in some casual wear near the foyer of the beach house, shooting the shit as they drank some cheap beers they got down the street. It was a drink that the lupine was willing to down, compared to what he was given back in Zoness. Erika was nowhere to be seen, she had told Falco that she would be heading over to the Cornerian Military Base to fill out some paperwork that would make her an officially recognized member of the Star Fox team. She hoped that the process would work smoothly and without a hitch so that she could get her personalized gear and eventually, an Arwing.

"So, what do you think's gonna happen if this progresses?" Wolf inquired.

"Probably no further than it is now." The avian exclaimed, leaning back to stretch his wings. "Honestly, why ruin a good thing?"

"Well, what do you mean?"

"Personally, I find marriage to be a death sentence."

Falco looked back at Wolf and saw he was troubled. He was fiddling around with his eye patch anxiously. He knew that he had said the wrong thing, and cringed at his carelessness.

"Shit man, I didn't mean it like that." He expressed regretfully.

"No, it's alright. There's something else on my mind anyway."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Eventually…"

Wolf realized that he had never gotten a reply from Serena when he had sent that message to her in his time of need; the need for someone to talk to. His sorrow grew as not even his tender words and flowing tears could bring her to sending him a response back. He felt as though it really was over, and that she wanted to erase him from her memory. But at the same time, it didn't seem to add up. He looked back on the last time they were together, their final sunrise. It was innocent, tranquil, and didn't seem to have a bitter type of end to it. There was one thing that she had said that made him doubt the worst:

"_I won't forget you." _

This was what was torturing him. The way she said it remained stuck in his head ever since it was uttered. The words felt so authentic, there had to be a reason behind all of it.

Out of the blue, something came upon Wolf. He had no warning that this would occur, or how, but the moment it did, it was implanted deep within and there was nothing that was going to stop him from doing what he was about to carry out. The thought of it was causing his fur to stand up on its end, sending chills down his spine.

"Hey Falco, I think I'm going to take a little ride." He announced, sounding distracted.

"Where to?"

"…" Falco caught on and appeared more concerned.

"Ah, I see. What are you gonna do?"

"Dunno yet." Falco approached him and gave him a friendly pat on the back.

"Don't worry, when the time comes, you'll figure it out."

"I know…"

_I just hope she meant those words…_

* * *

Wolf decided against taking a direct path to his former home, and chose to take the scenic route down the Cornerian shores. The roads were practically empty as the summer was coming to a close and there was no other use for the road unless you felt like taking the long way around to downtown Corneria. He figured it was a good way for him to think about what was to come. There would be no horns honking, lights flashing, or pedestrians crossing, it was just Wolf.

_What if she's not even home? Should I wait? God, I really should think this out beforehand. Damn impulses…_

The road started to wind back after some time as it approached downtown Corneria. A cool breeze ran across the black open-top convertible, the current was strong enough to keep Wolf stuck to his seat. His grip on the wheel became tighter as he continued to race down the barren shores. It was as though there was some sense of urgency floating around in his brain and he needed to get this over with.

To his dismay, that urge was going to have to wait. As soon as he reached downtown, the roads were filled to capacity. Based on some quick estimates, this would give him roughly half an hour to figure things out, as he had failed to do so when going down the shoreline. However, he needed only a few moments to realize what he had to do. Once he figured it out, he laughed at himself for not grasping the concept earlier.

_Just be myself…_

* * *

_Man, it's been so long since I've been here. I lived in 450 right?_

It was time, the moment of truth. In a way that felt oddly reminiscent to the day of his confession, Wolf was staring at the door to what was once his apartment. His whole body was hot to the touch, causing sweat to bead up on his fur before falling onto the soft carpet that lined the hallway.

Hesitantly, the lupine grabbed the door-knocker and slowly banged it against the door in a rhythmic pattern. Afterward, he took a few steps back and waited for the inevitable. Seconds felt like minutes, his heartbeat was all he could hear, pounding like a drum deep inside his ear. He wanted to try and knock again, but he was too distracted by the metrical thumping that his own heart was making to do anything.

Finally, the doorknob stirred, causing him to flinch for a split second. A quick twist and the door began to open. Wolf had no time to speak, for as soon as whoever was on the other end saw him, they shut the door violently, gasping in what appeared to be shock. He knew that it was Serena, her dyed red hair was unmistakable, even for a split second. He would never forget something as recognizable as that. Wolf's chest tightened with fear, the thought dawned on him once more. The worst may have happened, Serena may not have wanted to have anything to do with him. His head hung low in defeat while he began to walk away.

As he was retreating though, he heard something on the other end of the door. They were the faintest of sniffles and whimpers, Serena was crying. Wolf wanted to know what was wrong, so he came back and gently knocked on the door again, hoping she would respond back.

"Serena?" He whispered. "Serena, what's wrong?" His words were so gentle, that they may not have even been audible. When her sniffles continued, he knocked again. "Please come out, Serena." Now Wolf was beginning to tear up. No matter what the circumstance, he hated to know that Serena was upset. He really hoped that she would open the door soon, because the middle of the hall wasn't the best place for him to lose it.

A few moments later, the noise began to cease, and the door opened completely. Serena stood in the frame, trying to look somewhat presentable, but the smudges from her tears made it painfully obvious that she was not in a good place at the the minute.

"I'm so sorry, Wolf." She sobbed. "I just wasn't expecting you."

"Serena, you can't fool me. What's wrong here?" When she remained silent and motioned to come inside, he obeyed. Everything had practically looked the same as it did the day he left, save for a handful of new paintings that covered the off-white walls. None of them seemed to attract Wolf's attention, but nonetheless it was a lot more appealing than an vacant wall. Serena swept around the leather sofa's before sitting herself down on one, inviting Wolf to do the same. As he sat down, he noticed that the tabletop at the end of the hall was still filled with all the pictures of the two together. He may have been mistaken, but there may have been some others that weren't there before, but it had been so long that he couldn't really tell. After a quick glance at them, he focused his attention on Serena as she spoke.

"I got your message Wolf, and I really wanted to send a response because I knew that you were in bad shape-"

"Then why didn't you?" He questioned in a frustrated tone. He could see that she was beginning to weep silently, so he brought down his voice and continued. "You saw me on the video! I only wanted to know if you were doing well, and you still couldn't respond?! Why?"

"Because I wanted to respond in person…" She blubbered.

There was a major shift in mood right then. What was a pseudo-argument, had become something that could go either way. Wolf wasn't sure how to react. At first, his mouth formed a barely noticeable grin, feeling as though it was a kind gesture on her part, but was quickly replaced with a more stoic visage as he waited for her to resume her explanation. She wiped away a few stray tears as she did so.

"What I'm about to tell you can be considered my reply to your message." She stood up and faced Wolf, a look of anticipation in his eye. "My world just fell apart after you left. At first, my friends were constantly checking up on me, calling me every few hours and whatnot, thinking I was suicidal or something, but it wasn't like that."

Wolf's eye shot her a confused glare. "I really hope not…"

"Trust me, it wasn't, Wolf. I was just heartbroken; I needed some time to let it all simmer before I would be able to return to a somewhat normal life. About a month later, I was able to go around in public without too many problems, and within a few more months, I had become reacquainted with the single life." Her voice was somewhat muffled by her occasional sniffle, but otherwise, she seemed calm and collected as she spoke.

"Yeah, it was difficult for me too." Wolf replied with a sigh. "It really was hard. With time, it got easier though…"

"But then came your video." She said as she began to well up again. "When you sent that video, all the memories, good and bad, came back. But seeing you say what you said in such an evocative way somehow brought forth this odd feeling. It was almost as if an empty hole had been filled-" The rest of the statement was lost in a series of muffled cries. She collapsed back onto the couch and allowed herself to shed her tears freely. Wolf quickly got himself back up and attended to the stricken Serena. He put his slightly sweaty palm in her lap, carefully caressing hers as her ongoing sobs failed to relent.

"Serena," He murmured as he continued to comfort her, now resting his head against hers. "everything is okay. I'm right here." Her body shook as he adjusted himself, she didn't react negatively to the gesture, but instead aknowleged it with a smile.

"I still-" She mumbled.

"What was that?" He whispered back, turning his head back toward her.

"I…still love you…" She sniffled. "And...I was hoping that you'd maybe come back…"

Everything up to this point had been fairly predictable in Wolf's mind. He had expected them to argue a little but share some tears, but this was the last thing he had expected to occur. Silence fell upon the room, neither Wolf O'Donnell or Serena Groaves-O'Donnell moved an inch. He wished to say something, but the words escaped him as quickly as they had arrived. In a way, Wolf had shut down.

"Wolf?"

"Yeah?" He replied, sounding distant.

"Are you okay?"

"Is this real?" He responded, beginning to come back to his senses. "I mean, this can't be happening! This has to be a hallucination or something, I'm just speechless…" The lupine stood up, beaming like a child would when confronted with the front window of a candy shop. His tail wagged swiftly behind him as he paced around the coffee table that was in the center of the room before sharply turning back to Serena. "Is this reality?" He exclaimed with his still very toothy grin.

Serena took a moment to compose herself before she made a response. Saying nothing, she silently got up and approached Wolf, who still seemed to be bewildered by what she had said earlier, leaned in, and allowed their muzzles to lock. To Wolf, everything around him became nothing, leaving just him and Serena to experience it. His entire body felt as though it were about to go limp, but still he stood tall as he basked in the glory of it all. In that very moment, Wolf realized that what he said to Falco one lazy morning was true, Serena really was for him, and only him. He drew himself in closer and locked his arms around her. Deep inside him, the animal within let out a thunderous howl that Wolf had not expirienced in months. Eventually, it dawned on him that he wasn't going to wake up, because it sure as hell wasn't a dream.

Finally, their embrace was concluded, leaving them both speechless. Wolf was dazed at first, but when it passed, he looked back at Serena, who was now giggling quietly. He put on his grin again before she finally responded to his question.

"You be the judge…"

Turns out, it was reality after all, and it never felt better…

**End**

* * *

**A Word From The Author**

Thank you very much everyone, it's been quite a journey. Without you guys (you people know who you are), Oblivion would not have been possible. Until next time…

_**Canis Lupus - Coming Soon…**_

_**Star Fox Oblivion was started at 11:35 AM on August 31**__**st**__**, 2009**_

_**Star Fox Oblivion was completed at 4:07 AM on December 30**__**th**__**, 2009**_


End file.
